Pokemon Corrupted World: The Explorer of Time
by asdq
Summary: Hundreds of years after the planet has become paralyzed, a human with psychic powers finds a way to reverse the effect: Travel to the past and prevent the collapse of Temporal Tower. However, upon reaching the past, he loses his memories, as well as control over his powers. A retelling of PMD2 with a greater emphasis on worldbuilding and the backstories for the player/partner.
1. Prologue: Escaping the Darkness

Darkness. That was what I wanted. That was what I created. Yet now, after all these centuries, someone has appeared who threatened my perfect world of grey. Someone who should not exist; a creature with no innate elemental abilities, an animal that calls itself a "human". A species whose existence is the unnatural result of the world I created.

When I stopped time, the pokemon of the past were frozen in darkness. A darkness they despised. That despair created something I had not expected, nor have a name for. It was a crystal of pure negativity even I could not bear. Shortly after it appeared, the pokemon of that time ceased to exist, and new ones took their place. But these new pokemon were different; many lacked the elemental traits monsters were known for. These typeless creatures, known now as animals, are a plague to me. Most are too weak to pose a threat, but some have managed to create their own magic that rivals that of monsters. And one of those special animals found Celebi.

That pink, time traveling nuisance, one of the few Pokemon who survived the destruction of time, and the only one to remember the colors of the past. Her stories have convinced the humans to oppose my world of darkness. One particular human, a user of weak Mystic magic, found a way to prevent time from stopping, to bring color back to this world.

I cannot have that.

So now I hide in the cover of darkness. Without the flow of time, Celebi's powers are limited. If she wants to use time travel, she will have to come to this place sooner or later. When she does, I'll attack, and that will be the end of it. With Celebi gone there will be no one left who threatens my world.

* * *

"Are you sure this is going to work?" Grovyle asked me. He was such a pessimist, always questioning my ideas. Surely he should trust me more. We are a team, aren't we?

"Of course it will work," I heard someone answer for me, speaking in a variation of the ancient Knownun language. A human named Brandon, a Mystic magic user capable of seeing visions of the past. "Two psychics can't both be wrong, can we?"

The other psychic Brandon was referring to is me, Celebi. "No way!" I responded, "My time travel has never failed me before, and I know your visions to be accurate. Grovyle just needs to loosen up, we're almost there now."

Grovyle didn't seem to like my comment. "If you are so confident that the past can be changed, then where are our enemies? Surely you know they will be setting an ambush for us," he retorted.

"I doubt that," I replied, "No one even knows we are going to the past, aside from a few humans who support our cause. And what's this about enemies? The only pokemon who oppose us are Darkrai and Dialga, everyone else is on our side. If we were in danger, Brandon would have had a vision of us getting attacked, right?"

To that Brandon gave an answer I did not want to hear. "Not necessarily. My visions are extremely limited, and while they have never been proven wrong, we can't assume anything from a lack of a vision. Maybe we are safe, maybe we'll be attacked. Regardless, we should stay on guard, especially you two. Even with my light band, I'm not much of a fighter."

'_That's an understatement,' _I thought. In addition to Mystic, Brandon could also use Light magic. Unfortunately, he lacked any sort of skill with magic. Aside from his unique Dimensional Scream spell, he had almost no control over his mana. The light band was made specifically to help him focus Light magic, which has more combat potential than the Mystic element, but he is still limited to simple bursts of light to defend himself. It certainly isn't enough to compensate for his natural frailty. Still, as long as Grovyle and I stayed battle ready, we should be able to protect one human.

"Speaking of light, think you could do something with your magic? This place is so dark I can barely see. I can't even imagine how you're faring." Grovyle complained to Brandon. Until now we had traveled in darkness to avoid attracting Darkrai's attention, relying on Grovyle's superior vision to guide us. Brandon and I have been completely blind for a while now, and to be honest I welcomed the white glow of Light magic.

Seems I wasn't the only one. Despite his warning to stay on guard, Brandon didn't hesitate to conjure a sphere of light around his hand. "That's strange…" I said as I finally saw my surroundings. "The passage of time is just up ahead; it shouldn't be this dark here-" The sinister sound of a Dark Pulse interrupted me. I dodged the attack only to be plunged into darkness.

A moment later we were illuminated by the green light of Grovyle's Energy Ball. In this new light I saw the cause of the previous blackout: the Dark Pulse I avoided hit Brandon, disrupting his concentration on his lighting spell. As Grovyle's attack flew in the direction we were attacked from Brandon struggled to refocus his magic. Still, we were lucky he was able to survive the attack. Humans are hard enough to protect when they're conscious, he'd be a total liability if the Dark Pulse knocked him out.

"I told you Darkrai would be here!" Grovyle shouted, readying his Leaf Blade.

"I know you did, just focus on surviving! If we get through that portal up ahead, there will be nothing Darkrai can do to stop us!" I responded, unleashing a Magical Leaf attack to locate our shadowy enemy. To my surprise, my attack veered sharply upward before disappearing. '_He's right above us? Worse yet, he didn't even react to getting hit? Just how strong is he?'_

"Was that feeble attack all you could manage, Celebi?" Darkrai taunted. Before I could respond, I found myself trapped in a void portal, unable to escape. I began to panic, knowing that this was Darkrai's signature Dark Void attack. He planned to kill me in my sleep!

A moment later the void portal faded, and I was still awake. More than that, I could see again. Brandon must have refocused his magic as I was attacked. With a bit of focus, I could detect his Mind Lock spell was currently active on all three of us, preventing Dark Void's sleep effect. A short distance in front of me, Grovyle's Leaf Blade crashed against Darkrai's Shadow Claw.

"Blind!" I heard Brandon shout as he cast another spell. Suddenly, a ball of white light formed and burst around Darkrai's head. "Celebi! We have to get through the passage of time _now!_"

"I know! You and Grovyle run to the portal and wait for me to calibrate it to the correct time. I'll tell you when to go through." Darkrai wouldn't stay blinded for long, I had to focus my power quickly…

Darkrai knew this too. "Do you really think you can escape? No matter where or when you go, I will hunt you down! I will never let you destroy the darkness I worked so hard to create!" As he spoke Darkrai constantly traveled through void portals, no doubt trying to locate or distract me.

"The portal's ready, go through-" I was cut off as a Dark Pulse sent me reeling.

"Celebi! Are you okay?" the others asked, clearly worried.

"Just go! Hurry!" I shouted back, "Don't worry about me, nobody can catch me. I'll be fine!" As I began to recover from the attack I saw Brandon dragging Grovyle through the portal. "Ha! You'll never get them now, Darkrai. They're already in the past!" I exclaimed in triumph, looking around to face my foe… until I realized Darkrai wasn't here. '_Wait, where is he? Darkrai should be attacking me right now, unless…'_ in an instant I knew where Darkrai went: into the portal, after my friends.

* * *

Celebi is certainly a fool. Did she really think I would stay behind to fight her and let these two escape to the past? I knew she didn't have the strength to follow us now, as long as I finished the Grovyle and human quickly I could kill Celebi later. For now, I just needed to follow my enemies and attack when they least expected it.

Suddenly, the passage of time began to fade away, and at its end I saw a vicious thunderstorm. "Just hold on, don't let go!" That was Grovyle's voice. Following the sound, I saw my targets struggling in the ocean the portal had let out in. This was my chance. They were in no position to defend themselves; they didn't even know I was there. I prepared my Shadow Claw and flew toward my prey, reaching the pair just after the storm forced them apart. That's just great, now I could only attack one of them. Still, this made the human an easy target. I adjusted my flight and landed a devastating blow on his head. My victim immediately lost consciousness and fell below the waves.

"Brandon! Where are you? What happened? Brandon!" Evidently Grovyle hadn't seen me. Perfect, I'll let the waves soften him up before I attack. The second Grovyle reached dry land, he was doomed.


	2. Chapter 1: A Distant Memory

Once again, I found myself staring down my greatest fear, the one thing that intimidated me to the point of petrification. What was this terrifying beast? A monster that could kill me in seconds? A dangerous cliff blocking my path forward? Or maybe it's, oh, I don't know, something just a little more threatening than a tent modeled after a famous explorer?

How I wish that were the case. I wish I had the pride my species was known for, the courage to face any obstacle without hesitation. But no, I had to be the Piplup who was too intimidated by a _tent_ to ask for formal training. I came to Treasure Town to get stronger, to become a better leader, yet I can't bring myself to enter the famous guild led by a friendly, pink puffball of a pokemon. Pathetic. I've come all this way, and all I have to show for it is a strange stone with an even stranger pattern on it. I thought holding on to this stone would give me the courage I so desperately lacked. If I can't enter the guild I might as well just go home, or at least back to Sharkpedo Bluff…

Giving up, I turned around and descended the stairs leading to the crossroads. After a moment of deliberation, I continued south to Treasure Beach. The beach is a beautiful place, and the water is always calm. Ever since I made my way to Treasure Town, I've used the beach as a place to relax and recoup what little confidence I had. As per usual, the beach did not disappoint. A beautiful sunset, glimmering on the gentle waves rolling in from the ocean and reflected in the bubbles the local Krabby like to blow. I was so caught up in the scenery that I almost missed the small hint of green by Beach Cave, a strange sight against the red rocks and yellow sand. Deciding to investigate, I approached it slowly until I recognized the figure as a pokemon.

"Oh my Arceus, are you okay?" I couldn't believe it; someone had washed up in the sand! A Chikorita, seeming battered by the ocean's waves and unconscious on the beach. Wait, that doesn't make any sense. What would a Chikorita be doing in the ocean? I pushed the thought aside and shook the pokemon awake.

* * *

"Hey, are you okay, wake up! Come on, wake up!" I heard an unfamiliar voice urgently calling to me. With some effort, I managed to rouse myself only to find that my head felt unusually heavy. When I attempted to raise one arm to it I found that it was injured and hurt to move. When I discovered that I couldn't move my other arm I knew something was very wrong. "Oh good, you're awake. That's a relief." Turning toward the voice, I was surprised to see a Piplup standing over me. It didn't seem to be any bigger than average, it was as if I had gotten smaller. As my mind raced for an explanation, it came up blank. Not only could I not explain what happened, but I couldn't remember _anything_.

"Uhg… What happened?" I asked more to myself than to the Piplup. Struggling to stand up, I noticed that my sense of balance felt different from normal.

The Piplup looked at me, concerned. "That was going to be my question. I found you washed up on the beach and was kind of hoping _you_ would have an explanation for what a Chikorita was doing in the ocean."

"What does a Chikorita…" suddenly I realized what was going on. "Wait, WHAT! Why am I a Chikorita? I know I used to be human, how could I be a pokemon? How did this happen? Why-"

"Hey, calm down! Your freak out is starting to freak _me_ out, and I have no idea what you are saying. So why don't you calm yourself and prove that you're not completely insane by telling me if you have a name?" Piplup's reaction reminded me that shouting questions at an ocean was both getting me nowhere and making me look crazy.

"Um, my name? Right, well, it's uh…" as I struggled to recall my name a single memory surfaced in my mind. There was a thunderstorm, and I was struggling to keep myself above the ocean's waves. Then something struck my head, someone shouted what I can only assume to be my name, I fell under the waves, and then… nothing. Just a bright, golden light. That shout, what was it? After a few seconds the name finally came to me. "My name is Brandon."

Piplup seemed skeptical of my response. "Took you quite a while to remember your name, and it is a strange name too. You're not pulling some kind of trick on me, are you?"

I suppose I can't blame him for thinking something like that. I have been acting strange, but what's this about my name being weird? "I'm not trying to trick you. It's just, well, I don't remember much of anything. Nothing from my past, or why I was in the ocean, or even who I am. The only things I remember are my name and that I used to be a human." Piplup seemed to be confused by my explanation. "You don't believe me, do you?"

"Well… I don't know. What's a human?"

So that was it. He didn't know what a human was. "I'm not really sure how to describe it, so let's just say 'not a pokemon' for now, okay?"

"Not a pokemon?" Piplup seemed hesitant to accept that. "Okay, but you are definitely a Chikorita now…" I must have appeared disheartened at that because his attitude suddenly shifted, "Sorry, it's just that a lot of bad pokemon have appeared recently. Things have grown somewhat lawless."

Just as Piplup finished talking, we were enveloped in a cloud of poisonous gas. I wasn't sure what was happening, but I did know one thing: it _hurt_. A sharp reminder that I now had to deal with type matchups, more specifically the Grass type's five weaknesses. With some effort, I peered through the poison to see a Zubat steal something from around Piplup's neck. "I got it, Koffing! That stone the wimp was carrying!" the Zubat said as he flew off with his prize.

"Hey, what are you doing? That's my personal treasure!" Piplup exclaimed. By now the poison had started to dissipate, and I could clearly see our assailants.

"Whoa-ho-ho! Not going to make a move to get it back? You're an even bigger coward than we thought," the Koffing remarked, "We saw you pacing around with this stone and thought it might fetch a good price, and now you say that it's treasure? All the more reason to not give it back."

"Hold on, you attacked us to steal a rock? What kind of sense does that make? And what makes you think we're just going to let you take it?" I asked, realizing too late that there was no reasoning with criminals like this, especially in the condition I'm in.

The thieves knew this too and proceeded to threaten me. "Do you realize the position you're in, Chikorita? You're no match for us, so cut your losses and leave that wimp to defend himself," the Zubat said, flying uncomfortably close. I instinctively tried to back away only for my injured leg to stop me. "That's what I thought," Zubat said, noticing my fear. "But in case you get any ideas… Leech Life!" A small needle shot from Zubat's mouth and struck my side. To my surprise the attack didn't hurt but left me feeling exhausted instead. A moment later I saw Zubat and Koffing flee into a nearby cave. Giving up my little tough-guy act, I collapsed in the sand… again.

Piplup was noticeably shaken by what had just happened but tried to help me anyway. "Are you okay? Grass types are not very good at taking those kinds of attacks. I know you were trying to help, but there wasn't much you could do against those two."

"I'll be fine," I responded, "I don't think their attacks injured me too badly, and besides, I couldn't just do nothing. What did they steal, anyway?"

"My Relic Fragment. Just some cool-looking stone I found a while back. It doesn't really have any value, so they'll probably just abandon it when they realized they can't sell it," Piplup answered. "There isn't much point in going after it right now."

"But didn't you call it your personal treasure? I think we should go after them." I didn't expect anyone to give up on something like that so easily.

"Like I said, they won't be able to sell it, and you're too injured to fight anyway. I'll wait for those two to abandon the Relic Fragment, right now we need to get you to a healer. I think I know a place that will help, can you walk?" Piplup's question reminded me that I still didn't know the extent of my injuries. Still, I had one bad leg and three good ones, so walking shouldn't be too hard, right?

"I think I can walk, as long as it's not too far. Where are we going?" I winced slightly as I tried to stand up. I hope this injury isn't too bad, because I would rather not sit around doing nothing when I could be looking for an explanation for my lost memory.

"There is a guild nearby. I've never been inside, but explorers often get injured on explorations. Even if they don't have their own healer, they'll know where we can find one." With that, Piplup helped me up and led me to the guild.


	3. Chapter 2: A Team is Formed

Author's Note:

Well, this is a surprise! I didn't expect anyone to find my story so quickly. Guess I'll have to update the cover image to something actually related to PMD2. Anyway, just thought I'd add a note to the beginning of the chapter, I've seen several other writers do it and it seems pretty fun. But you're not here to listen to (err, read) me ramble, so on with the chapter!

* * *

Once again I found myself at the entrance to Wigglytuff's Guild. Only this time I wasn't alone, I was with an injured pokemon looking for help. The short walk from the beach had left Brandon completely exhausted, a point I attributed to the stairs he had to climb with a bad leg. Still, he was holding up pretty well, all things considered. "This is the place. The explorers at this guild are always willing to help other pokemon."

"That's good, because I'm too tired to go much further," he responded. "So, what do we do now?"

"There's a sentry stationed underground. They should let us in if we stand on that grate," I said, hesitantly stepping forward. For whatever reason I'd always found the sentry intimidating. I don't know why, it's not like I've done anything wrong. Except maybe running away from home. If anyone found out about that I could get in serious trouble.

I was snapped out of my thoughts by the sound of the sentry beneath me. "Pokemon detected! Pokemon detected! The footprint is Piplup's! The footprint is Piplup's!"

"Is it that same kid AGAIN?" another voice boomed.

"I think it is," the first voice responded. It then asked me, "Are you actually coming in this time?"

"Yes," I shouted down the hole, "I've got an injured pokemon with me, we were looking for help."

"An INJURED pokemon? In THAT case, I'll send SOMEONE up to help you. Just WAIT there," the louder voice shouted. That should make things a bit easier.

"Looks like you were right when you said they would help," Brandon said. "Have you been here before or something? It sounded like the sentry recognized you."

"I've tried to join this guild a few times, but I've never actually been inside. I'm just too timid to actually… you know… _do_ anything," I answered. This was the first time I actually talked to the sentry. Normally I would wimp out after getting my footprint read, but now that someone was with me running away seemed like a very bad option.

After a short yet awkward silence, the gate to the guild opened up to reveal a Chimecho. "Hello there! Loudred mentioned something about an injured pokemon, I assume he was referring to you?" she asked Brandon.

"Yes, my leg is hurt, though I don't know how bad it is. Walking isn't any fun though," he responded.

"In that case I'll help you into the guild," Chimecho continued, using Psychic to lift Brandon into the air. "You can follow behind us, Piplup."

"Thanks," I replied simply. Following Chimecho into the tent, I was only mildly surprised to see a ladder leading underground. The windows on the sides of the mountain and the sentry below the entrance made it pretty clear that there was more to this base than just a tent, but I'm sure I've seen pokemon enter the guild who would struggle to use a ladder. Upon closer inspection I saw that the ladder formed a spiral shape that nearly any pokemon could climb. At the bottom of the ladder was a large, mostly empty room with two bulletin boards. Examining the boards, I noticed what looked to be job requests on them. This must be where the exploration teams prepare for their missions. A second ladder led further underground, probably to the rest of the base.

Chimecho floated to a small array of desks before placing Brandon on the ground. "Okay, let me see your leg…" while she focused on Brandon I took some time to look around. To my disappointment, there wasn't much of note. I briefly considered making a job request for my stolen Relic Fragment but decided against it. It was just a rock; I doubt it would be worth anyone's time to track it down. Returning my attention to Chimecho and Brandon, I found out that Brandon's injury wasn't too bad and should heal fairly quickly on its own. "How did you end up like this anyway? It looks like you lost a fight, yet your teammate is completely fine."

"Actually, we're not a team. I found Brandon outside Beach Cave a little while ago with his hurt leg and brought him here," I cut into their conversation, "though forming a team might be a good idea. I've wanted to join this guild for a while now but never found the courage to do so. Having a teammate would certainly help. So, uh, Brandon, do you want to form a team with me?"

He thought it over for a bit. "Sure. I don't really have anywhere to go otherwise. Honestly, I'm not sure what I would do if you didn't let me join you." I hadn't really thought about that, but at least he had his own reasons for joining a team. It would have been a bit strange if he joined me just because I asked.

"In that case, I'll take you two to the Guildmaster to get registered as part of the guild. Just follow me to the lower floor," Chimecho offered. She floated down the ladder, once again using Psychic to help Brandon descend, and I followed behind them. The lower floor was much busier than the first. There were a few hallways leading to other rooms, and several pokemon were milling about the main room. Chimecho led us to a door next to the ladder. "This is the Guildmaster's chamber. Wigglytuff will help you set up your team. Oh, and don't worry about being too formal with the Guildmaster. He's a pretty laid-back guy." With that Chimecho left, leaving us at the door to Wigglytuff's room.

As I gathered the courage to open the door, Brandon said exactly what I was thinking, "It seems pretty strange that she would lead us all the way here but not introduce us to the Guildmaster. Guess recruiting new guild members isn't Chimecho's job." Probably noticing my hesitation, he opened the door and stepped forward. That was probably for the best, it would have been pretty awkward if someone saw us just standing around outside.

Still, I could tell Brandon was just as nervous as I was. Wigglytuff was standing in the back of the room, facing away from us. I don't know what he was doing, but he didn't seem to notice us enter the room. As we approached him I decided to speak up. "Um, excuse me? Mr. Guildmaster? We would like to form a team and join your guild, and uh-"

Wigglytuff suddenly turned around. "Hiya! I'm Wigglytuff!" he cut me off, "You want to form an exploration team? That's great! The first thing to do is choose an exploration team name. What will your team be called?"

I admit I was not ready for that kind of enthusiasm. Wigglytuff's reaction caught me off guard, and I had never even considered what our team's name should be. Brandon looked surprised too, though he recovered a bit more quickly than I did. "Well, um… I never really thought of a name. Do you have any ideas?" If I couldn't come up with anything I might as well let my teammate decide our name.

"Hmm… It should be something simple, but not childish. Something powerful, yet modest, a name we could grow into," Brandon reasoned. "How about Strength?"

"Strength?" I tried the name out. "Team Strength. I don't have any better ideas, so let's go with that."

Wigglytuff smiled broadly. "That's a great name! Next I need the names and species of pokemon that will be on the team."

"It's just the two of us, so I assume we can skip the species part and just introduce ourselves. My name is Crest." Brandon seemed surprised to hear that. It took me a moment to realize I had never properly introduced myself to him. He probably thought I didn't have a name.

His confusion didn't last long, however. "And my name is Brandon."

"Good, good! Now wait just one moment while I get you registered. Registering! Registering! Registering! All registered… YOOM-TAH!" We weren't quite sure what to make of that. What exactly did Wigglytuff do to register our team? He continued before I had time to ask. "Here are some basic supplies you'll be using as an exploration team. There's a treasure bag, wonder map, and some equipment to get you started. Oh, and don't forget these!" he finished, handing me two badges.

I grabbed the treasure bag and took a look inside. There were a few pockets for items, one for the wonder map, and a small pocket that I couldn't identify a use for. The equipment Wigglytuff gave us included a power band and a silver bow. The bag had a single, large strap meant to be worn over the shoulder, but there was also a smaller, second strap that would make it easier for Brandon to carry. As exciting as it was to get all this stuff, we had no idea what to do with it. "Okay, so we have a team, what do we do now?"

As I expected, the Guildmaster was quick to respond. "You said you wanted to join the guild, right? It's a little late to do any work right now, so I'll just have you two get moved in and introduce you to the rest of the guild at tomorrow morning's assembly. Chatot!"

A moment later, another pokemon entered the room. "Yes, Guildmaster? You called?"

"We have some new recruits! Could you get them set up for their time as apprentices?" though Wigglytuff worded it as a question, Chatot treated his words as a command.

"Yes, of course, I'll keep everything in order, as per usual," he responded, sounding slightly annoyed. "I take it you two are the recruits. I'm Chatot, the guild's head of intelligence and the Guildmaster's right-hand pokemon. Now, follow me, if you please. I'll give you a brief rundown on the guild's lower floor." There was a sense of authority in Chatot's voice that I hadn't heard in Wigglytuff's. Wigglytuff made me feel at ease, but this pokemon already sounded like I had upset him somehow. I picked up the treasure bag and we followed Chatot out of the room.

Upon exiting the Guildmaster's chamber, Chatot began to lecture us. "All right, you two, listen up! The guild requires that all apprentices live on the premises for the duration of their training. As such, we will be providing a room for you to stay in, which we'll see in a moment. For now, take note of this room. Every morning, until you graduate from this guild, you will wake up bright and early for our morning briefings. The briefings take place right here, outside of the Guildmaster's chamber. Loudred, one of your fellow apprentices, will see to it that you do not miss the meetings. After the meeting, you will report to me for instruction. Now, if there are no questions, I'll show you to your room. The crew rooms are all down this hall, yours will be at the very end."

It didn't really matter if we had any questions; Chatot had already started down the hall before we could ask any. If this was Chatot normally, I did not want to see how he would be when angry. Brandon and I followed him, quietly and obediently, until we reached a room at the end of the hall. "This will be your room. You are expected to stay here every night as long as you are a member of this guild, unless otherwise approved by both myself and the Guildmaster. That is all for now. I'll give you a tour of our facilities after tomorrow morning's briefing. Until then I suggest going to bed early to prepare for your guild work." With that Chatot left, leaving me and Brandon to process what just happened.

I felt a bit overwhelmed by today. Not only had I formed an exploration team, but I'd have to report to the strictest pokemon I've met in a long time. I'm a weak leader at the best of times, how could I possibly manage with someone like that monitoring my progress?

The thought of what I just signed up for was starting to get to me when Brandon spoke up, "So… you _do_ have a name!" Seems he's been lost in more lighthearted thoughts than I've been trapped in. I laughed as the humor of his statement hit me.

"Yeah, I guess I do. Apparently I never thought to tell you though. That's what happens when you get attacked: you forget what you were doing and assume whoever didn't attack you has always been an ally." I couldn't believe how quickly a little humor put me at ease. "There is one thing I've been meaning to ask, it's about the way you talk. Why have you been speaking Knownun? Everyone I've ever met speaks Pokesh."

"Wait, I've been speaking a different language than everyone else?" How did he not notice? I just nod in confirmation. "If that's the case, then why can everyone understand me, and me them?"

"Pokesh was made to be easily understood. Any pokemon can understand and speak it almost instinctively. Knownun, however, is a dead language. It is needlessly complicated and difficult to speak, but since it draws power from the Unown it has the unique effect of being universally understood. I've heard some legends say that all monsters can understand Knownun while only pokemon can understand Pokesh, but those are only legends. I've never actually seen a monster that wasn't also a pokemon." Suddenly I remembered that Brandon said he used to be "not a pokemon," which is probably why he doesn't speak Pokesh.

He seemed to come to the same conclusion. "I used to be a human, so I guess it makes sense I would only know the universal language. Still, I'll try to learn Pokesh. I don't want to attract too much attention to myself by speaking in a language no one uses."

"That's probably a good idea," I agreed, "Anyway, that was all I wanted to know. Well, I also want to know how you lost your memory, but you probably don't have an answer for that. For now, we should focus on the guild work. Chatot said we would have to wake up early tomorrow, so let's get some sleep. Goodnight, Brandon."

"Sleep well. I don't know what is going to happen tomorrow, but we need to be ready for it." Brandon responded. Moments later he was asleep.

My mind was still racing, but I knew nothing would come of it. I was finally an explorer, or at least I would be starting tomorrow. I needed to rest so I could explore. From this point forward, I was part of a team. I couldn't be a coward anymore, I had to face my fears head on.


	4. Chapter 3: Mysterious Places

Author's Note

Hello reader! Hope you're liking the story so far. The next few chapters will follow the original story a little more closely, for example we are finally going to enter a mystery dungeon! I'll be keeping the dungeon sections fairly short since writing them tends to get repetitive and is generally less interesting than most other character interactions. This chapter is from the player's perspective, mostly so I have an excuse to explain how dungeons work.

* * *

"Up and at 'em, it's MORNING!" a ridiculously loud voice bellowed. "Hey, come ON! Wake UP already! Guildmaster Wigglytuff has a BIG temper, and you ROOKIES are not going to make me LATE for the morning briefing. So get it in GEAR!"

Uhg, that was not a pleasant way to wake up, now my head hurt more than my leg. "Ow… Why is he so loud? My head is pounding…" Evidently Crest didn't fare any better. "What was that about a morning briefing?"

"I think he meant we're late for our first day at the guild," I answered.

"Guild?" he responded sleepily. "Oh yeah, that's right. We joined Wigglytuff's Guild, which means…" suddenly Crest realized what I had already said. "Gah! We totally overslept! Let's hurry to assembly, Brandon!" He grabbed our bag and bolted out of the room, and I struggled to keep up with him on my bad leg. By the time we reached the meeting place outside Wigglytuff's chamber, the rest of the guild was already there, standing in two lines of five. Crest and I took our spots at the end of each line.

"You're LATE, rookies!" There was that loud voice again. Looking around for its source I found a Loudred. Come to think of it, Chatot did mention Loudred would make sure we made it to the morning assembly. I didn't realize that meant I'd being going deaf every morning.

Speaking of Chatot, he seemed to agree that Loudred needed to quiet down. "Hush now, Loudred! Your voice is ridiculously loud. Now then, it seems everyone is here. Guildmaster! The guild is in full attendance!"

That must have been Wigglytuff's que, because he immediately came out of his chamber to address the guild. "All right everyone, before we get to our usual cheers, I have an announcement to make. As you may have noticed, we have two new recruits joining us," he said, obviously referring to me and Crest, "The Piplup is Crest and the Chikorita is named Brandon. They will be training with us as Exploration Team Strength, so everybody be sure to be friendly to our new friendly-friends!"

That was a bit of a relief. I expected to be scolded for being late, but the Guildmaster didn't seem to notice, either that or he didn't care. Crest was also pretty surprised, but I could tell by everyone else's reactions that this was normal behavior for Wigglytuff.

"Now, with that out of the way, on with the daily cheers. One!" Wigglytuff shouted excitedly.

The guild responded, "Don't shirk work!"

"Two!" the Guildmaster continued.

"Run away and pay!" was the response.

"Three!"

"Smiles go for miles!" the cheers finished. I made a mental note to memorize the cheers in Pokesh by tomorrow's meeting.

"Okay, pokemon. Time to get to work!" Chatot said, ending the meeting.

The guild replied with an enthusiastic "Hooray!" before disbanding to attend to their work. Meanwhile Crest and I were left wondering what we should do.

"Ah, you two," Chatot said as he approached us, "it wouldn't do to have your team wandering around the guild. Follow me and I'll give you your assignment for today." As Chatot began to lead us I realized I would have to climb the ladders to get around the guild. At first glance I thought it to be an impossible task, but the rungs spiraled to accommodate quadrupeds like me. The only problem I had was the pain in my leg, but between Chimecho's Heal Pulse yesterday and some time to sleep it off my injury was little more than a slight inconvenience. Still a bit sore, but nothing too bad. I just couldn't run very well on it.

When we reached the guild's upper floor, Chatot led us to one of the bulletin boards. The board was covered in important-looking papers, but I couldn't read what was written on them. If I had to guess that was the written form of Pokesh. It dawned on me that I would have to learn the language quickly if I didn't want to look like a total idiot.

"This is the Job Request Board. As you may know, there have recently been mass outbreaks of mystery dungeons, and these dungeons have been causing problems for many pokemon. Those problems get reported to this job board." Chatot's explanation had already gone over my head. I had no idea what a mystery dungeon was, but I figured I would find out soon enough. "Your first mission is to complete a job from this board. Specifically," he searched the board before handing a paper to Crest, "this is a good mission for a new team."

Crest read over the paper. "You want us to retrieve an item someone dropped? I was hoping for something more adventurous, like exploring or looking for treasure or something."

"Hush now! It's important that you rookies pay your dues and work your way up to more difficult missions. More importantly, have you considered your partner's abilities? He's been walking with a limp since you got here yet you still want to attempt a more difficult job?" Chatot scolded. It seemed like an overreaction to me, my leg shouldn't cause any problems. Then again, I don't know what to expect from these missions. Can minor injuries really be that dangerous while on missions?

Chatot's words seemed to hit Crest hard though. "You're right, sorry, I wasn't thinking. So, why did you choose this job in particular?"

"Look at the location. This job takes place in Drenched Bluff, which is a small dungeon filled with Water and Rock types. You two have good type coverage for this job, and item retrieval missions are great practice for new explorers. Now, I'll leave you two to prepare for your mission. Once it is complete, you will meet the client here, in front of the job board, and I will review your performance. Understood?" Chatot didn't wait for us to answer. "Good, now if you'll excuse me…"

"That was… harsh," I said after Chatot left. "Don't worry too much about what Chatot said, let's just focus on the job. What is it?"

Crest seemed to realize my injured leg was not nearly as bad as Chatot made it out to be. "We have to retrieve a Spoink's pearl from Drenched Bluff. It should be a fairly straightforward mission. Let's get going."

I followed Crest out of the guild and to the crossroads, where we stopped to check our wonder map. Upon pulling it out of our bag, we saw that Drenched Bluff had been highlighted on the map. I'm not sure how that happened, but it certainly made finding the place easier. I followed Crest's lead until we reached the dungeon.

"Ok, this is Drenched Bluff," Crest said, opening our treasure bag. "We better put on our equipment before we enter the dungeon. Here." He handed me the power band and my team badge.

"Um… how do I put this on?" I asked. The power band resembled some hybrid of a bracelet and a scarf. Even if I had arms I wouldn't know what to do with it.

"I think you wear it around your neck, like a scarf. Can't you use vines or something to put it on?" Crest had a point. I knew most grass types could use vines as though they were hands, but I had no idea how to do that.

"I don't know how to use vines," I answered. "Come to think of it, I'm not sure if I even know any moves."

By now Crest had put on the silver bow and was helping me with the power band. "Of course you can use moves. I checked your badge, it detected that you know Tackle and Growl. You'll figure it out when we start battling. As for your vines, you should probably talk to Sunflora, I'm sure she could teach you how to use them." He pinned my badge to the power band and picked up the bag. "Anyway, you ready for the dungeon?"

Actually, I was not ready. "I don't really know. What is a mystery dungeon, exactly?"

Crest seemed to be expecting my question, or at least was not surprised by it. "It's a place that changes every time you enter it. The pokemon that live in the dungeons are usually hostile, though a few are explorers like us. No one really knows how the dungeons work, hence the 'mystery' part, but there are some patterns explorers are working to map out. Most of the jobs I saw on the job board took place inside dungeons, so we better get used to exploring them."

"I guess so," was my response. "Well, I think I'm ready now. Let's go."

When we entered the dungeon there was a brief moment of darkness. When it passed, we were in a small room, and the exit was nowhere to be seen. Looking behind me, I was surprised to find a wall. In fact, the only way out of the room was a narrow corridor in front of us.

Crest picked up on my confusion. "Once you enter a mystery dungeon, the entrance disappears. The only ways out are to reach the end of the dungeon, use an item to get out, or use your badge's escape feature. Escaping is pretty bad though; it warps you back to the guild and you often lose items in the process. We should focus on moving forward." He began toward the corridor I spotted earlier, and I followed close behind. It wasn't very long before we reached another empty room. Or at least I thought it was empty. Crest stopped for a moment and picked something up.

"What is that?" I asked. I hadn't expected to find anything of value here.

"It's an oran berry. Eating it can heal the damage you take in battles. Keep an eye out for any items on the floor, they can be invaluable when exploring mystery dungeons." I decided not to question where the berry, or any items we might find later for that matter, came from. Maybe some else dropped it, though I suspected it had more to do with the mysterious nature of the dungeon. After wandering around for a bit we came across a structure resembling a staircase. "Structures like this are how you progress through dungeons. Most pokemon just call them stairs, but they aren't that simple. Once you go up or down dungeon stairs, you can't go back. The size of a mystery dungeon is measured by how many stairs you have to use to reach the end."

"How long is Drenched Bluff?" I asked, choosing not to question the "logic" of the mystery dungeon.

Crest thought about it for a moment. "I'm not sure. Chatot said this was a small dungeon, so it's probably less than ten floors deep."

Just like the dungeon's entrance, the stairs disappeared behind us when we reached the bottom. This time, however, there was a pokemon in the room with us, a Shellos. It attacked me with Mud Slap, and I narrowly avoided getting hit in the face. The indirect hit from the attack didn't hurt much, reminding me that I had a type advantage in this dungeon. Crest retaliated with Pound and, following his example, I finished the battle with Tackle.

"Looks like you were right, I figured out how to fight as soon as we were caught in a battle." It was a bit strange how easily we defeated a pokemon who attacked us first, but I wasn't about to complain.

"I told you battling was easy. We're just lucky you avoided Mud Slap's accuracy drop effect. Believe me, battles become much harder to win when you can't hit your enemies." Crest replied.

We continued to explore the dungeon, picking up a blast seed, heal seed, and another oran berry along the way. Whenever we encountered an enemy, we just used Tackle and Pound to defeat it. I know Crest said I could use Growl, but I never bothered to try it. Crest also knew Growl and never used it, so I figured it just wasn't a very useful move. After the seventh floor we were let out into a more open area.

"Hey, Crest, where are we?" I asked.

"This must be the end of the dungeon," he replied, looking around. "Hey, up ahead! I think that's the pearl we were looking for." Sure enough, there was a large, pink pearl wedged between two rocks. Crest pulled it loose and placed it in our bag.

"So, now what? Do we have to go back through the dungeon to get home?" I'd rather be done with that place for now, so the answer Crest gave did not disappoint.

"No, now that we're out of the dungeon we can safely use our badges to return to the guild. I'll send you back first, since you can't actually reach your badge." As he spoke Crest pulled out his badge and shined some kind of light on me. A pillar of yellow light surrounded me, and when it faded I was standing outside the guild. A moment later Crest appeared beside me in a similar column of light. I was hoping all the one-way teleporting would be confined to the chaos of mystery dungeons, but it would seem that our badges were just as nonsensical.

After having our footprints read by the sentry, we met with Spoink and Chatot in front of the job board. Spoink was very grateful to have her pearl back and even gave Crest some gold coins as a reward.

"Wait, you're giving us 2000 Poke just for returning your pearl?" I could tell from Crest's reaction that was a lot of… whatever Poke was. It looked like some kind of currency.

"Yes, of course! That's nothing compared to my pearl's value, I don't know what I'd do without it! Thank you again!" Spoink said before somehow bouncing up the ladder. I silently wondered how often she had to come here for help to be that proficient at using a ladder.

Chatot seemed pleased with our performance, so what he said next really caught me off guard. "Good work, Team Strength. Your first mission was a success. Now, had over that Poke, if you please."

"Huh?" Crest seemed just as confused as I was but handed over the Poke anyway.

"The majority of monetary rewards go to the guild to fund explorations and your training. Your share of the reward comes out to… 200 Poke." Chatot explained, handing back our share.

I might have protested that, but I didn't want to draw attention to myself. Chatot didn't know that I don't speak Pokesh, and to be honest I'd rather he not find out if I can avoid it.

Crest had no such reservations, however. "We only get ten percent?"

"Ten percent of monetary rewards, you get to keep any items or other rewards you get from doing missions. I wasn't kidding when I said you'd have to pay your dues." Chatot corrected. I got the feeling Chatot and Crest were not going to get along. Luckily, Crest realized there was no arguing with the guild's rules and gave up the rest of the Poke.

Chatot took the money to the lower floor, and before I could ask Crest what we should do next I heard a bell chime below us. "Everyone! Dinner's ready! I've finished making dinner, come on, let's eat!" Chimecho called from the lower floor. Guess that answers that question. We hurried down the ladder to join the rest of the guild for dinner. Luckily for me, everyone was too busy eating to bother with conversation. I was able to get through dinner without Chatot finding out about my language problem.

After dinner, everyone went to their rooms for the night. When Crest and I reached our room, I decided to ask him for some help. "Hey Crest?"

"Yeah?" He waited for me to continue.

"Think you could teach me how to read and speak Pokesh? I really don't want Chatot to find out I don't know the language." I was pretty sure Crest would be willing to help me.

He thought about it for a second, "Pokesh is only the spoken language, the written language is called Footprint Runes. Kind of like how the written form of Knownun is called Unown Runes." Good thing I asked now then. It would have been pretty embarrassing to ask anyone who didn't know about my origin how to read a strictly verbal language. "And like I said before, Pokesh is almost instinctual. Just listen to the rest of us talk and you should figure it out pretty quickly. For now, just try speaking to me in Pokesh whenever no one else is around. As for footprint runes, I can teach you a bit more directly. Let's just go over how to read the display on your badge for now, and later I'll help you read the posters we get our missions from. That sound good?"

I nodded but hesitated before speaking my answer, albeit slowly, in Pokesh. "Yes."


	5. Chapter 4: Clashing Psychics

Author's Note:

So, uh… this is a long chapter. Oh well, at least a lot happens! We have our first outlaw mission, and with it our first boss fight. Plus, this chapter has the last major exposition dump, at least for a while, and I needed to make Brandon a bit more competent before things get out of control. Anyway, enjoy the extra-long chapter!

* * *

"Up and at 'em, it's MORNING!" Loudred's voice boomed. Uhg, I was not ready for today. Brandon insisted on staying up late last night to learn the morning cheers in Pokesh. I can't really blame him; I would have done the same thing. But I was still tired. As I forced myself to get up I saw Brandon was already awake and had our bag. I'm not sure how he managed that on his own, he even had the extra strap on correctly.

"Crest, I know you're tired, but we really shouldn't be late for assembly again," he said, or at least tried to say, in his very broken version of Pokesh. Just as I expected, he was learning the language quickly. What I wasn't expecting was how difficult it would be to teach someone Pokesh. Since the language is made almost entirely of repeating your own species name, I didn't have much experience making many of the sounds he would need to use. The result was me tripping over my own tongue as I tried the Chikorita dialect. Still, at least we got some good laughs out of it.

As we made our way to the morning briefing, I tried to determine why Brandon didn't seem tired. He stayed up as late as I did last night, maybe even later, yet he wasn't nearly as exhausted as I was. Either Grass types don't need much sleep, or he was really good at hiding how tired he actually was.

The morning briefing was a bit of a blur, likely the result of me not really being awake yet. The only thing I really remember from the briefing was that Brandon was able to recite the morning cheers in Pokesh, just like he had rehearsed. That's good, at least my lack of sleep hadn't been a waste.

"Ah, Team Strength. Come with me, I'll give you your assignment for today," Chatot's voice snapped me awake. Brandon wasn't the only one afraid of disappointing our supervisor. We followed Chatot up the ladder, and to my surprise he led us to a different board than yesterday.

"Wait, isn't the job board over there? Why are we at this board?" I asked, too tired to actually read the posters. There were a lot of pictures of pokemon, but beyond that I really didn't have the energy to figure out what they were.

Chatot seemed oblivious to my current mental state. "Correct. Today you will do a job from this board. This is the outlaw notice board; your task today is to capture any outlaw on this board."

That got my attention. "Catch an outlaw? You can't be serious, there's no way we can do that! We aren't strong enough!" I admit that opposing Chatot so openly was not my best idea, but beside me I could see Brandon was thinking the same thing. Actually, he had it worse than I did. At least I had some battle experience, Brandon's first fight was only yesterday.

"And how do you intend to get stronger if you always run away from your fears?" Ouch, that's two days in a row Chatot has pointed out my flawed approach to training. "I'll have you know that it was the Guildmaster's idea to have you try an outlaw mission. If you have a problem with it, talk to him about it. Otherwise, I suggest you prepare for a difficult battle. Most outlaws are stronger than regular hostiles."

The Guildmaster wanted us to do this? He must be crazier than I thought. It looked like there was no getting out of this, though. "Okay, but what should we do to prepare? More importantly, how do we know which outlaw to go after?"

Chatot thought it over for a moment, "I suppose you could use a little help… how about this? Bidoof!"

"I'm coming!" I heard a voice from the lower floor. Shortly afterwards, Bidoof came up the ladder. "You called?" he said, out of breath. He must have run here when he heard Chatot. I guess most of the guild is afraid of him.

"I want you to help Team Strength prepare for an outlaw mission. Just help them choose an outlaw and show them where to prepare their items," Chatot commanded.

"Yup yup, sure can do! I'll do it right, by golly." For some reason, Bidoof was really excited to help us out.

Chatot nodded. "That's good. Now, Team Strength, I will review your performance again later tonight and report it to the Guildmaster. Until then, I leave you to your preparations." With that Chatot flew back to the lower floor.

"Hey, Crest? I'm going to talk Sunflora about using vines, since I can't read the posters anyway. That okay?" Brandon asked. He had a point. It didn't make any sense for him to just stare at pictures when he could be doing something useful.

"Yeah, sure. I'll choose a mission and meet up with you here." I said. Turning to Bidoof, I asked, "So, how are we going to choose an outlaw?"

* * *

I found Sunflora on the lower floor. And by "found," I mean she was at the bottom of the ladder when I fell down.

"Ow… so much for my leg feeling better," I muttered to myself.

"Oh my gosh, are you okay?" Sunflora asked as she helped me up.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. Just need to get used to climbing the ladder I guess," I answered, checking to make sure nothing fell out of the treasure bag. "Actually, I came down here to ask if you could help me with something. I know that most Grass type pokemon can use vines, but I don't know how to. Crest thought maybe you could teach me."

"Actually, I don't know how to use vines, either. I don't have any vines," she responded. "But I'm sure it isn't any different than using most Grass type moves. Just do what you normally do to use Razor Leaf, or any other Grass move."

I was quiet for a few seconds. "I, um, don't actually know any Grass moves. Just Tackle and Growl." Okay, that was a bit embarrassing. I can't read, I barely speak Pokesh, and I'm an incompetent fighter. Just _perfect_ for an exploration team.

Sunflora noticed my reaction and tried to help. "Hey, don't worry! Everyone has to start somewhere, and learning to use vines should make learning Razor Leaf easier, too. Try thinking about how you use Tackle, you focus your energy in your body, right?"

Focus my energy? I never really thought about it, but I guess even Normal type moves have some sort of elemental charge to them. "I… think so? I do feel a bit different when I'm attacking."

Sunflora was pretty happy with my response. "Good, so, I guess, just focus that energy into the seeds around your neck? I think that's how Chikorita vines work."

My seeds, huh? It was worth a shot, I guess. Now that I know how attacks work, I should be able to apply energy control learn new ones. With a bit of effort, I managed to extend a vine out far enough for me to see it. It was a bit difficult to control and far too slow to be used as an attack, but with some practice I should be able to use vines to lift things and use items. "Hey, it worked. Thanks, Sunflora!"

"Oh my gosh, you're so welcome! I must be a really good teacher!" She half joked in response before heading up the ladder. I took a moment to practice controlling my vine before heading back up myself. I didn't spend too much time practicing, though. Crest had probably found an outlaw for us by now.

Or at least I thought he would have. Turns out they were _all_ too intimidating. When I reached the upper floor, Crest was freaking out, and Bidoof clearly wasn't sure what to do. "Crest, that's all of the listed outlaws. You gotta choose one of 'em."

"We're not strong enough for any of these! I'm level five, the weakest outlaw listed is level ten!" Crest complained. That was not a good sign. When Crest showed me how to read my badge last night, he also explained the level system, so I had some idea of what to expect from a level ten pokemon. I also knew it would not end well for me; I was only level four.

"You know these are only predictions of the outlaw's levels, right? And that levels only give you a guess as to how strong someone is?" Bidoof tried to reason with Crest. He then noticed me and seemed to have an idea. "Golly, looks like Brandon is back. How about this: the board should update to have new jobs pretty soon, why don't you go to Treasure Town and prepare your items for the mission? When you get back you can choose an outlaw from the updated listings."

I decided to answer for Crest, "That sounds like a good idea. I actually haven't been in town yet though, so I don't know what I need to do."

"I reckon that settles it, yup yup. You two get prepared and I'll watch the board," Bidoof answered, clearly grateful that I would be the one talking some sense into Crest.

I started up the ladder and Crest reluctantly followed behind me. When we reached the top, I let Crest take the lead on the way to town. Although he knew more about the shops than I did, I kept the treasure bag instead of giving it to Crest. It was pretty clear that I would have to be the leader for today's mission. Crest explained what each of the shops were as we passed them, and I quickly realized that we had no use for most of the shops. There was a dojo, but it wasn't open, and we didn't have time to train there anyway. The move relearning service didn't help when we only knew two moves each, and I highly doubt we will ever need Chansey's day care service. I didn't quite understand what Xatu's shop was, and we didn't have any items in Kanghaskhan Storage. That just left the Kecleon Shop and Duskull Bank.

Crest led me to the Kecleon Shop. The shop was run by two Kecleon, one green and the other purple. The shop itself was filled with berries, seeds, and a few items I didn't recognize. The purple Kecleon actually waved us over. "Hello, Crest! We've been wondering when you would stop by, it's been a while you know. Anyway, here. This stone is yours, right?" A stone?

"My Relic Fragment! Where did you find it?" Crest replied excitedly. Looking closer, I noticed a string tied to the rock and realized this was the treasure that was stolen from him when we met.

The green Kecleon answered, "A Koffing and Zubat just showed up one day and tried to sell it to us. We thought it looked familiar and made sure to buy it off them. We talked down their price though; convinced them it was worthless. They accepted five Poke for it. No need to pay us back on this one."

Crest happily put on the makeshift necklace. "Thank you for returning it, I wasn't sure if I'd ever get it back."

"Of course! Anything for a valued customer. Now then, back to business. Welcome to the Kecleon Shop, home to the finest items and TM's in Treasure Town! See anything you'd like?" Both Kecleon seemed pretty eager to make a sale.

"Actually yes," Crest said, pulling our Poke out of our bag, "that stun seed and an escape orb, please." Kecleon handed over the items and took the Poke in return. I used a vine to put both the items and our few leftover coins in the treasure bag. We were about to head back to the guild when we saw a Marill and Azurill run up to the shop.

"Misters Kecleon!" the Marill called out as they approached.

The green Kecleon answered, "Ah, little Marill and Azurill! Welcome to the shop, my young friends. What can we get for you?"

"We'd like to buy some apples," the Azurill replied, "is that okay?"

"Of course it is, little one. Here you go!" Kecleon handed the young pokemon a few apples each.

Marill seemed pretty excited. "Thank you Mister Kecleon!" As they left, the shopkeepers turned to Crest.

"Those two are to be admired. Their mother has gotten quite sick, so recently they have been doing the shopping for her. They really are good kids," the Kecleon gossiped. "So, Crest, what did you need dungeon supplies for? Have you finally joined that guild?"

"Actually, I have. Brandon and I formed an Exploration Team, and we need items for today's mission." Speaking of today's mission, we really should get going. I was about to speak up when Marill and Azurill returned.

"Misters Kecleon!" the Marill greeted (again).

"There was an extra apple!" Azurill continued.

Then Marill clarified, "We didn't pay for this many."

The purple Kecleon chuckled. "Oh, that. Don't worry about it, you two. That one is a gift! Share it between yourselves on your way home."

"Really? Thank you, Mister Kecleon and Mister Kecleon!" Azurill replied happily. As they turned to leave, Azurill tripped and dropped one of the apples. Not too surprising, considering he has no arms and only two legs. I stepped forward and returned the apple using a vine.

I think Azurill thanked me, but I was distracted by a sudden dizzy feeling. A moment later, I heard someone shout for help. When the dizzy feeling faded, I looked around for the source of the sound but could not find it. The voice sounded familiar though. In fact, it sounded just like Azurill, but that didn't make any sense. Azurill was right in front of me, and he was fine.

"Hey, Azurill! Come on, hurry home! We have to find our lost item, remember?" Marill called.

"Oh, right. I'm coming!" Azurill replied quickly. "Thanks again. I have to go now. Bye!" he said as he left. Meanwhile I was trying to figure out where that scream had come from.

Crest seemed to notice. "Hey, Brandon, is something wrong? You kind of zoned out for a moment there."

"Well, I thought I heard something. A cry for help, actually. But I can't figure out where it came from," I answered.

"A cry for help?" Crest seemed skeptical. "I didn't hear anything. You're probably just tired, I know I am. Let's just head back to the guild for now."

Just tired, huh? Guess I can't deny that, I did stay up late practicing Pokesh last night. But that scream I heard, it sounded so real. At the very least I know it was an Azurill, one quirk of Pokesh is that you always know what species of pokemon is speaking. Still, I can't explain what I heard, and the Azurill we just saw was fine. Maybe Crest was right, and I just imagined it.

On our way back to the guild we once again ran into Azurill and Marill, though this time there was a Drowzee with them. They appeared to be talking about something, but I couldn't make out the details. Besides, there was really no reason for me to be listening in on them anyway.

Crest was curious, however. "Hey, what are you guys talking about?" he asked the group.

Marill answered him, "Oh, well, you know how we lost an item a little while ago? Drowzee says he's seen our item and offered to take us to it."

"Really? That's great!" Crest replied, "I hope you find it."

"Well, if we're going to find that item, we really should get going now. I saw it at the peak of Mt. Bristle. Just follow me, you two," Drowzee said in an unusually calm voice. As the three of them made their way toward the crossroads, Drowzee bumped into me. "Whoops! Please excuse me, Chikorita. I must be on my way."

Once again I felt that strange, dizzy feeling. This time, however, I didn't just here a voice. I saw something, too. Drowzee and Azurill were in some sort of rocky area, and it looked like Drowzee was threatening Azurill.

"If you don't cooperate, it will mean big trouble for you!" Drowzee said.

"H-h-h…HELP!" That was the exact scream I heard before. Azurill was in trouble, I was sure about it now. We had to follow them.

As my dream ended, I heard Crest talking behind me. "It's great that those two were able to find some help. With so many bad pokemon popping up it can be hard to do good deeds." He then noticed my worry. "Hey, what's wrong? Why do you look so grim?"

"Azurill's in trouble. I can't explain how, but I just had some sort of… vision, I guess, where Drowzee was attacking Azurill." Crest didn't believe my answer.

"Are you sure about that? Drowzee seemed pretty nice to me, and what's this about a vision? I know you're not a Psychic type. Like I said before, you're just tired. It was just a bad daydream," Crest reasoned. "Besides, we need to focus on our guild work for now. Let's get back to the outlaw notice board."

I didn't like that idea, but with no way to prove my claims there was little I could do. We returned to the guild and met Bidoof at the outlaw notice board.

"Oh, Crest and Brandon, you're back! The job listings updated while you were away, yup yup. There are new outlaws to pick from now," Bidoof greeted us as we reached the board.

"That's good," I answered. Turning to Crest I asked, "Do you see any we could handle now?" Crest was trembling, probably intimidated by the outlaws on the boards. I guess I just had to pick one then.

"Brandon," Crest eventually replied, fear heavy in his voice, "look up there. At the top left."

I wasn't sure what Crest wanted me to see. He knew I couldn't read the posters, unless he was referring to something very obvious I would miss it. Still, I looked up to the board to find… Oh no…

"You were right, Drowzee is a criminal," Crest continued quietly. "We have to go, now. Azurill's in danger." I couldn't tell if Crest was scared to face a wanted outlaw or just felt guilty about not believing me earlier and letting Drowzee take Azurill. Either way, I was sure there was something on that wanted poster I was better off not knowing.

I used a vine to grab the poster and shoved it in the treasure bag's smallest pocket before running to the ladder. Crest followed close behind me, still struggling to find the courage for what we were about to do. "We've got to go, thanks Bidoof!" I shouted behind me as I climbed out of the guild. We ran to the crossroads where, to our surprise, we ran into Marill.

Crest spoke up first, "Marill, what are you doing here? Where is Azurill?"

"I don't know, we went looking for our lost item and I got separated from him somehow!" Marill answered, clearly worried. "I called and called but couldn't find Azurill or Drowzee anywhere. Then I got scared and came back here. I don't know what to do!"

"Just calm down," I said, trying to regain control of the situation. "Show us where you got separated. We will find Azurill and bring him back here safely, but you need to show us where he and Drowzee went."

"Ah, right. Thank you. Just follow me, it was this way," Marill answered, a bit calmer now. I decided not to tell him Drowzee was an outlaw, there was no need to make Marill any more worried than he already was. He led us to a mountain covered in strange, sharp rocks. Looking around, I saw a narrow path that didn't seem to go anywhere. There were no other ways forward, so I figured the path must have been an entrance to a mystery dungeon.

"Is this where you got separated?" I asked. The uneven terrain here would make it easy to hide from someone, Drowzee probably used it to lose Marill from their group.

"Yes, this is where I last saw them," Marill answered calmly. He must have convinced himself that his brother wasn't in any danger.

Crest, however, seemed even more worried. "They must be in the mystery dungeon. You wait here, in case they come out. Brandon and I will look for them inside the dungeon."

"Okay, just be careful. The hostiles in Mt. Bristle were too strong for me," Marill warned.

"We'll be fine. Come on, Crest, let's hurry," I said, not wanting to waste any time. The second we entered the dungeon Crest confirmed my worst fear.

"Do you have any idea how far in over our heads we are right now?" he asked.

"Do I want to know?" I responded nervously.

Crest just sighed. "I just checked the dungeon stats for Mt. Bristle on my badge. This place is filled with Flying- and Poison- types, and all the hostiles here out-level us. But that's the least of our worries. Hostiles probably aren't smart enough to make use of their advantages over you."

That was our _smallest_ problem? "What is the worst part?" I asked, afraid that I already knew the answer.

My fear only heightened when Crest hesitantly responded, "Drowzee is level twelve."

Suddenly I realized just how screwed we were. Drowzee was easily stronger than the two of us combined. Even though we outnumbered him, there was no guarantee that we could damage him. That's not even considering how difficult it will be to reach Mt. Bristle's peak, which seemed to be where my dream from earlier took place. Since I was both weak and at a type disadvantage, Crest would have to do most of the fighting here. That meant I wouldn't be getting the experience I needed to get stronger, and Crest would be too exhausted to fight Drowzee.

"There isn't much we can do about it now," I reasoned, "let's just battle as many hostiles as we can on our way through the dungeon. At least we can try to bridge the level gap a bit." It wasn't much of a plan, but hopefully it would be enough to give us a chance against Drowzee.

My idea to fight to get stronger had a rough start. The first enemy we faced was a Spinarak, and it was much stronger than anything I had fought before. I opened the battle with Tackle and Crest followed it up with Pound, but the Spinarak was still able to retaliate with Poison Sting. The attack hit me hard and I fell to the ground, still conscious but unable to fight back. I heard a loud beeping sound from my badge, apparently meant to warn my teammates that I was low on health. Luckily Crest was able to finish the battle with another Pound.

"You okay?" he asked me as the Spinarak disappeared.

"I think so," I answered. While Crest fished an oran berry from our bag I checked my badge. The data that thing could read was honestly amazing. It had precise measurements for all my battle relevant stats, complete with real time HP monitoring. It's hard to say how accurate those readings were, especially considering I could barely read any of them , but my badge concluded that the Poison Sting had left me with only 3 HP and the battle had indeed raised my level. Out of curiosity, I watched the HP display as I ate the oran berry. The berry restored my strength almost instantly, and the display updated accordingly.

Crest noticed my interest in my stat display. "How useful do you think that data is? Everyone I've talked to says it's not an accurate measure of how strong you are."

"I don't know," I replied, "but it updated pretty quickly. The HP display could be useful, if it's reasonably accurate anyway. Everything else just seems to be for tracking personal growth."

"Couldn't you just, you know, _feel_ how much damage you take?" Evidently Crest didn't see much use for the tool.

I can't really blame him for that; every use I could find for it was just theoretical. "If the display is accurate enough, we can use it to gauge how strong different enemies are or predict which battles we can or can't win. Otherwise, yeah it's pretty useless." For now, I decided to trust my badge's measurements and leave fighting enemies with attacks stronger than Poison Sting to Crest.

Our progress through Mt. Bristle was slow. Most of the hostiles were too dangerous for me to fight, and we had to save our supplies for our battle against Drowzee later. We went through oran berries and heal seeds as quickly as we found them, though we were able to hold on to an x-eye seed and rollcall orb. By the time we reached floor nine, which Crest claimed was the final floor before the peak, our battling had gotten me up to level six and Crest to level eight. We were still weaker than Drowzee, but at least the battle wouldn't be completely one sided. At least, I hoped not.

"This is it," Crest said as we approached the final set of stairs. "You ready for this?"

To be honest, I wasn't ready. That didn't matter though, we had to save Azurill. "Yes. Let's go, we've spent enough time here already."

We climbed the stairs and upon reaching the peak were greeted by Azurill running straight toward us, clearly panicked. "H-h-h…HELP!" he shouted before seeing us. "Ah, Crest! Please, help me! Drowzee is-"

He was cut off when a wave of psychic energy burst between us. "I told you, if you don't cooperate it will mean big trouble for you! That goes for your friends, too!" Drowzee exclaimed, furious that he had been found out.

Crest attempted to hold his ground. "I don't think so, Drowzee! We're Exploration Team Strength, and we're going to capture you!" That probably would have carried a lot more weight if Crest wasn't shaking like an Earthquake.

Drowzee noticed Crest's fear and scoffed, "Please, I can tell just by looking at you that you're a total rookie. What chance do you have against me?"

I thought Crest was about to lose his nerve, or at least start screaming something at Drowzee. He was terrified, but I don't think even Crest expected what he did next. Crest charged at Drowzee, and in his sudden outburst unleashed a Bubble attack. Seems that training we did in the dungeon paid off. I tried to follow up with Tackle, but it was stuffed out by Drowzee's Pound and I was sent flying across the ground. Regaining my balance, I used Growl so my next attack would not be so easily parried. A red aura appeared around Drowzee as his attack was decreased.

Meanwhile, Crest continued to pester Drowzee with Bubble. The attacks didn't do much damage, but they did force Drowzee to focus on Crest. I tried Tackle again only for my attack to be easily dodged. How did Drowzee know I was coming? He didn't even see me attack! I kept using Tackle and Drowzee continued to dodge.

"I've had enough of you, Chikorita. Take this. Disable!" Drowzee said as he interrupted my attack. With the energy for my Tackle dissipated, I feebly fell past Drowzee only to get caught in his Confusion. I couldn't move, and the attack was far stronger than anything I had faced before. I heard my badge give a low health warning and thought that the fight was over, or at least my part in it was. However, Crest used this as an opportunity to land an attack on Drowzee. Crest's Pound interrupted Drowzee's concentration long enough for him to drop his psychic powers over me.

I fell to the ground, and a moment later Crest landed beside me. Drowzee had responded to Crest's attack with a Pound of his own, though his weakened attack power meant that Crest was relatively unfazed by the attack. "He's too strong for us to fight head on," I said to Crest, "I can't even damage him at all, but I have an idea." Reaching into the treasure bag, I pulled out the stun seed and threw it at Drowzee. The seed burst when it hit and left him petrified while we planned our next move.

Crest grabbed the oran berry from the bag and offered it to me. "You're too injured to fight like that, and I can't fight him myself. You should heal while Drowzee's petrified."

I had a different idea. "No, you keep the oran berry and keep fighting. I'll use our items to control the pace of the battle from a distance." Crest didn't seem to like the idea. "I already told you I'm too weak to do any damage. If we want to beat Drowzee, this is our best option."

"Alright. I'll keep fighting, but you need to be careful. If you're not going to heal, stay as far from the battle as you can." By now Drowzee was starting to recover from the petrification, so Crest returned to the battle. When Crest's Pound hit, Drowzee fully regained mobility and I was left to watch the two fight. Unfortunately, it was a losing battle for Crest. Drowzee's attacks were powerful and Crest was overwhelmed. Things went from bad to worse when Crest fell victim to Hypnosis.

That was my que to use the rollcall orb. I shattered it on the ground and Crest warped next to me. Thinking quickly, I fed him our last heal seed and readied our blast seed. As Crest was waking up, Drowzee realized what had happened and charged at us. When he was close enough, I bit into the blast seed and shot a burst of fire at him. The blast caused Drowzee to stagger long enough for Crest to eat the oran berry and fully recover. It looked like the battle was turning in our favor, but the only items we had left were an x-eye seed and an escape orb.

By now Drowzee was angry. Crest used another Bubble, and the attack left some foam around Drowzee's feet. He responded by using Confusion to trap Crest. In a panic I used our x-eye seed, blinding Drowzee. That was it, our last item. If we couldn't finish this fight now, we would have to escape.

I saw Crest struggling to get up after that last attack. He was surrounded by a faint, blue aura, which I recognized as his Torrent ability. This drew my attention to myself; I had a similar, green aura. But that didn't make sense. I didn't know any Grass moves that would benefit from Overgrow… did I?

"Crest, think you can use Bubble one more time?" I asked.

"Yeah, I think so. You have some sort of plan?" he responded.

I nodded in confirmation. "Put everything you have into your next attack, but wait for my signal. I think we may have a way to win this."

"Alright," Crest answered, preparing a final Bubble. I also had to focus. My plan would only work if I my next attack was successful. I focused my energy into my leaf, using what I had learned from Sunflora earlier, and felt an unusual surge of power running through me. It was time.

"Now Crest!" I shouted.

"Bubble!" Crest exclaimed as he unleashed his attack.

"Razor Leaf!" I added, launching a barrage of sharp projectiles from the leaf on my head.

Our combined attacks flew toward Drowzee, and with the foam from Crest's previous attack at his feet he was too slow to dodge. Drowzee took a direct hit and was sent flying into a nearby wall. He did not get up.

With the battle over, I fell to ground, exhausted. As Crest ran over to make sure I was okay, a single thought entered my mind. _'I can't believe that worked.'_


	6. Chapter 5: A Different Perspective

Author's Note:

The last chapter was super long, and this one is super short. Coincidence? Absolutely! I just wanted to write some chapters from Wigglytuff's point of view, and this seemed like a good place to start. Besides, we needed an explanation for why this is the only time in the game that Magnezone meets you at the dungeon to catch an outlaw. With that out of the way, on with the mini chapter!

* * *

"Honestly, Guildmaster, those two are not prepared for an outlaw mission. Why, when I informed them of today's assignment, Crest openly rejected the idea," Chatot reported to me.

I only smiled in return. "Just as I expected. What about Brandon?"

"He was quiet, suspiciously so in fact," Chatot answered. "I'd bet three perfect apples he disliked the assignment though."

Quiet, huh? Chatot wasn't very good at reading other pokemon. If he was, he'd understand my reason for sending Crest to catch an outlaw. I had hoped that the mission would get some response out of Brandon though. That Chikorita was a total mystery, even to me, and I wanted to see how he would react under pressure. If he can hide his thoughts from Chatot, he might be clever enough to see through my façade.

Speaking of my façade, I couldn't let Chatot know my true personality either. Sure, he knew I wasn't the incompetent puffball I was known for being, but I at least had him convinced that perfect apples were my weakness. "Perfect apples? Where? Can I have some?"

That seemed to fluster Chatot. "That's not what I meant! I was just saying that Team Strength is unfit for an outlaw mission." Just as Chatot finished we heard a sound outside my chamber.

"Chatot, could you check that?" I asked, already knowing his reply.

"Of course, Guildmaster. I'll report back immediately." Chatot briefly left the room to check what had happened. He returned with an exasperated expression on his face. "Brandon just fell down the ladder. He doesn't seem to be hurt, though I must again call into question his ability to complete today's assignment."

There was Brandon being strange again. First he introduced himself in Knownun, and now he lacked the coordination to use a ladder? There was definitely something off about him, but I couldn't seem to figure out what it was. "I think he'll be fine. Everyone makes mistakes, and even if he does fail his mission, that's something to learn from." Actually, I was a bit disappointed. Crest really needed a confidence boost, and I was hoping Brandon would be strong enough to guarantee a successful outlaw capture.

Chatot wasn't happy with my response. "Surely it would be better to fail a mission that wasn't so dangerous. What do you plan to accomplish by sending them on such a difficult job?"

"Honestly Chatot, it's quite simple," I responded, "either they fail and learn that it's okay to make mistakes, or they succeed and become more confident explorers. Now, come here for a moment. We have some mail I need you to see." Returning to the back of my room, I retrieved a letter that a friend of mine on the Water Continent had sent me.

"What is it that you want me to see, exactly?" Chatot asked as I handed him the letter.

"The Expedition Society has started work on a detailed map of the world. Ampharos requested that we lend our assistance," I answered. "For that reason, I would like to have the guild mount an expedition to one of the less explored areas of the Grass Continent. Your job is to organize the expedition. Decide where we will go and make any necessary preparations, and I will choose which of the guild members will partake in the exploration."

"Certainly, Guildmaster," he said calmly, though I knew he was secretly excited to lead an exploration. "I'll keep everything in order. Preparations should be complete within, let's see, ten days I think. After that we can depart on your command. Now, you must excuse me. I have to begin planning right away." With that he left the room, leaving me to my own work.

Now, who should go on the expedition? I'd have ten days to decide, but it didn't hurt to start thinking about it now. Chatot and I would both go, of course, and it would be great experience for Crest and Bidoof. If we brought two rookies, then we needed at least three or four more experienced members to help out, but I wasn't sure who those members should be. I decided it would be whoever performed the best leading up to the expedition.

That's enough teambuilding for now anyway. I couldn't finalize anything until Chatot decided where we would go, but that didn't mean my preparations were done. I needed to write back to Ampharos to let him know we would contribute to his project. I was almost done with my letter when Bidoof came running into my room.

"Guildmaster!" Bidoof exclaimed, clearly worried about something.

"Oh, Bidoof! It's always great to see my friendly friends, but why are you in such a rush?" I asked in my cheerful persona.

"It's about Crest and Brandon, yup yup. Chatot had me help them choose an outlaw mission, but the outlaw they chose is way too powerful for them! They ran off before I could warn them about it," he answered.

That's strange. I thought Crest would be too scared to do anything that rash. Maybe Brandon talked him into taking that job. Regardless, I wasn't worried, at least not yet. "Now, don't worry Bidoof! I believe in our new friendly friends. I'm sure they can handle it. Don't worry, don't worry!" That didn't seem to calm Bidoof as much as I thought it would, so I added, "Just have Dugtrio send me a copy of the mission they took, and I'll make sure everything is all alright."

He seemed to accept that. "Well, if you're so sure about it, then okay. I'll go find Dugtrio, yup yup."

Bidoof left the room, and it wasn't long before Dugtrio appeared from the floor. "Hello Guildmaster. Bidoof said you were looking for this?" he said, placing a wanted poster in front of me.

"Ah, yes. Thank you, thank you! That is all I needed, Dugtrio," I answered, dismissing Dugtrio so I could look over the poster.

Dugtrio tunneled away, probably back to the job boards, and I took a look at the outlaw Team Strength was chasing. It was a Drowzee, wanted for kidnapping and some petty theft, and his predicted level was twelve. I didn't see what Bidoof was so worried about. This mission wasn't very difficult. Psychic types were tricky, but nothing too dangerous for a Chikorita or a Piplup. The only possible problem was that his location was currently unknown. There had to be something I was missing.

Out of ideas, I decided to check my guild badge. Since I was the Guildmaster, I could use my badge to monitor all of my recruits. When I checked on Team Strength, it became clear what was wrong. Crest was level five, and Brandon was only level four. I had overestimated them, and now they were challenging an outlaw that was far stronger than they could handle.

Still, something wasn't adding up. Why would Team Strength attempt this mission? Surely they knew they weren't strong enough, and Drowzee's location was still unknown, yet they rushed out of the guild before Bidoof could stop them. The only reason someone would do something like that is if they knew where Drowzee was. Once again checking my badge, I saw that the team was in Mt. Bristle.

That was enough for me. They had to have located Drowzee, maybe they were in a rush because he was kidnapping someone right now. Using my badge, I contacted Officer Magnezone to help Crest and Brandon at Mt. Bristle. Even if they couldn't defeat Drowzee, at least they tracked him down to be captured.


	7. Chapter 6: Suspicious Success

Author's Note:

We're back to the main story! This chapter finishes Mt. Bristle and continues the idea that Wigglytuff is smarter than he appears. But maybe he isn't as clever as he thinks he is…

* * *

"Hey Brandon, are you okay?" Now that the battle was over we had time to regroup. Azurill had run off when I attacked Drowzee, so he'd probably found his way to Marill by now. To be honest I wanted nothing more than to get as far away from here as possible before Drowzee recovered, but I couldn't go anywhere if my partner was injured.

"I'm fine, just exhausted from the battle," Brandon answered.

That's good, now we just had to get back to the guild. "In that case, let's leave before Drowzee wakes up. I don't think we can handle fighting him again," I suggested.

"But isn't today's mission to _capture_ Drowzee? We shouldn't just leave him here," Brandon reminded me. He did have a point; our job was to catch an outlaw. I guess my cowardice got the better of me again. Still, what were we supposed to do with Drowzee? Taking him back to the guild with us could work, but one of us would have to stay here to make sure Azurill and Marill got home safely. If Drowzee woke up and one of us had to fight him alone, it would be a disaster.

I was about to ask Brandon about this when I heard a voice from the room's entrance. "They're up here, this is where they were fighting," Azurill said, apparently leading someone to the battlefield. Turning toward his voice, I saw Marill, two Magnemite, and a Magnezone following Azurill.

"Crest, there you are! Why didn't you tell me Drowzee was a criminal? Azurill is my brother, you should have let me help you fight," Marill said as he ran up to us.

I wasn't expecting to be scolded for helping Azurill. "We didn't think you would be strong enough to fight him, so I didn't say anything hoping you would stay safe," I defended.

"To be fair, keeping you in the dark was more my idea than Crest's. He was just following my lead," Brandon added, covering for me. I owe him for that one.

Magnezone hovered forward and asked me, "Where is Drowzee now? We received word that your team chased him here, so leave it to us to arrest him." That must be Officer Magnezone then. At least that answers the question of what to do with Drowzee.

Before I could respond, the Magnemite floated over with Drowzee between them. "We've already apprehended him, boss. He was unconscious by the wall over there."

"Really? That's impressive, you two! I heard you were a rookie team, yet you managed to defeat an outlaw on your first attempt," Magnezone congratulated. "We will handle the rest of Drowzee's capture from here and send the reward for your work to your guild. Thank you for your cooperation."

As the officers made their way down the mountain, I turned to the rest of our group. "We should probably head home; Brandon and I are exhausted. What are you two going to do now, should we take you back to Treasure Town with us?" I asked Marill and Azurill.

"Yes, that would be great," Marill answered. "We can get home on our own from there."

Brandon seemed to like that idea. "Let's get going then. I've had enough battling for one day." He shined his badge on Marill and I did the same for Azurill. After they finished warping we escaped the dungeon as well.

I appeared next to Azurill, in front of the guild. "Okay, we're just outside Treasure Town. It's getting pretty late, so you two should probably head home. You know the way from here, right?"

"Of course I do! Come on, Marill. Mom is probably waiting for us," Azurill said, running toward the stairs.

"Hey, Azurill, wait up!" Marill responded. Before he left, Marill turned to us. "Thank you so much for your help. I've got to go now, bye!" he finished hastily as he chased after his brother.

Brandon and I made our way into the guild and waited by the outlaw notice board for Chatot. He said he would review our performance, but I was feeling confident. Sure, I was a bit of a coward, but our mission was a success. As long as Chatot didn't find out that I almost screwed up at the end I would be fine. As I felt the pride of a successful day welling up within me I noticed Brandon seemed to be lost in thought again.

"Hey Brandon, what are you thinking about? You don't seem very excited to report our success to Chatot," I questioned him.

He snapped out of his thoughts but still hesitated before answering, "I'm just… tired, I guess. I keep replaying today's events in my mind. It's a lot to keep track of, and so much of it doesn't make sense-" he cut himself off when Chatot flew up the ladder, probably in an attempt to keep his poor Pokesh a secret.

"Ah, Team Strength. I must say, I am impressed with your performance today. Capturing an outlaw on your first attempt is no small feat," Chatot started. I couldn't believe it; Chatot was actually happy with something I had done. I thought he was impossible to please. He continued, "However, it was quite careless of you to reject Marill's help. I expect better of you in the future, Brandon. For now, though, it's a job well done. Here's your share of the reward for capturing Drowzee. Now, get some rest. The Guildmaster has a special mission planned for you two to do tomorrow."

Chatot handed me 300 Poke before descending the ladder. As I went to put the Poke in the treasure bag I noticed Brandon was, once again, lost in thought. "You know we had to keep Marill safe. You didn't do anything wrong."

"That's actually not what I was thinking about," he responded much more quickly than last time.

"So, what was it then?" I asked.

Brandon thought for a moment but eventually answered, "Pretty much everything else." That was not a very helpful answer. He continued, "Could we talk about this later? I need to collect my thoughts, and it's something I'd rather the rest of the guild not find out about, at least not yet anyway."

I guess that meant I'd get a better answer later then. "Alright, for now let's just recover from today's battles. It's probably almost time for dinner anyway."

* * *

Today certainly was eventful. I learned to use vines, finally explored town, had some sort of vision, fought an outlaw, and learned Razor Leaf. Honestly a good day overall, but it left me with several questions. Now that everyone had gone to their rooms for the night I could finally talk to Crest about everything that has happened. At least this is a good time to practice Pokesh.

"So, are you finally ready to talk about whatever has been bothering you?" Crest pestered me, though I can't blame him. It's been pretty obvious that I've been hiding something since we got back from Mt. Bristle.

"Yeah, I am. It's just that there's so much that happened today, I'm not sure where to start, but I guess this morning is as good a place as any. Remember that weird vision I had?" To be honest, so much happened today that I wouldn't be surprised if Crest had forgotten already.

He remembered though and looked upset about it. "You somehow knew that Drowzee was dangerous, but I didn't listen and Azurill got kidnapped because of me…"

"It was not your fault. I wouldn't have believed me either. I just wanted to know if you knew anything about where my vision came from," I assured him.

Crest collected himself and thought for a second before replying, "I've never heard of a Chikorita having visions before. Usually that sort of thing is limited to Psychic types and legendary pokemon. Some other pokemon can have visions, but not Chikorita, at least not normally."

"I figured as much. At least we know the vision was accurate, so if it ever happens again that's something to keep in mind," I concluded. "The other thing I was thinking about was what Chatot said about a 'special mission.' Any idea what he was talking about?"

"Not a clue," Crest answered, "but it is something to be excited for. He said we should rest up for tomorrow, so it's probably not going to be easy."

"That's what I was thinking too. We should probably go to sleep early tonight," I suggested.

"You're probably right, we need to rest after today. Goodnight, Brandon," Crest said, turning over in his bed.

"Goodnight," I said back.

There was one more thing on my mind, but it was something Crest shouldn't hear. Today's mission gave him a huge confidence boost, and I didn't want to ruin that, but something was bothering me. Why was Officer Magnezone at Mt. Bristle? He knew we were chasing an outlaw, but surely there were other teams doing outlaw jobs today. It can't be standard protocol for Magnezone to meet you in the dungeon, which means someone thought we were going to fail our mission. My first thought was that Chatot sent him after us, but he didn't seem to want to send us on an outlaw mission in the first place.

That just left Wigglytuff. That pokemon had to be hiding something. There's no way someone as simple minded as he appears to be would send new recruits on a mission as dangerous as today's was; he should be prioritizing our safety over everything else. The only explanation was that he was faking it. He must have known Crest had confidence problems and sent us on a difficult mission to boost his confidence. Then, when we chose a mission that was too dangerous, he sent Magnezone to make sure we were okay. Wigglytuff must have even asked him for a detailed report on the mission, which would explain how I got blamed for leaving Marill behind. Either that, or he vastly overestimated us and Chatot sent Magnezone with the expectation we would fail.

The latter idea was what I had originally thought, but something about Wigglytuff just seemed… off. There was no way someone that childish could run a successful guild, even with Chatot by his side. That was the thought that led me to conclude the Guildmaster was behind everything that happened today. Still, I couldn't confront him about it until I had more proof. From this point forward, I would have to watch Wigglytuff closely to find out who he really was.


	8. Chapter 7: The Power of Water

Author's Note:

As you may have noticed, I'm cutting out some of the filler and sentry duty days. This means that it's already time for Waterfall Cave (and by extension time to give Brandon some much needed level-ups). Most importantly though, this chapter introduces a new character, one who wasn't in the original story. After all, Team Strength has to recruit new members eventually.

* * *

Despite everything that happened yesterday, I found myself wide awake long before Loudred made his rounds. Where this energy came from was a mystery to me, but I suspect it had something to do with my transformation into a pokemon. Perhaps it was photosynthesis from the sunlight peeking through the window, or maybe I've never needed much sleep to begin with. Either way, it was good news for Crest; I could wake him up before Loudred got here.

"Hey, Crest, wake up," I said, shaking him awake.

"Huh?" Crest replied sleepily, "Brandon? Why are you up so early?"

"It's not that early," I defended. "Just thought you'd rather not be woken up by Loudred. He'll be around pretty soon." Just as I finished I heard Loudred's usually wake-up call down the hall, followed by some equally loud complaints from Corphish.

Crest seemed to notice too. "I guess I can't really argue with that. Still, I don't understand how you're not tired…"

"I don't know either," I said, "but it doesn't really matter. Besides, it means our mornings have a chance to be a bit more peaceful." By now I had the treasure bag and was just waiting for Crest to get out of bed.

"You forgot the best part: whatever Loudred's reaction will be to us already being up when he gets here," he said, suddenly ready for today.

That was one thing Crest was wrong about though; the best part about being up early was that Loudred was standing behind Crest right now. "You MIGHT be a bit disappointed then, Crest," he said. Meanwhile I was trying my hardest not to laugh. If I didn't know any better, I would have thought Piplup could fly after seeing how high Crest jumped.

"Now come on Crest, you even knew he was coming," I jabbed, noting that Loudred was just as amused as I was.

Of course, Crest was completely flustered. "Let's just go to assembly now, okay?" he said, trying to hide his embarrassment.

We were a bit early for the morning briefing, but it didn't really change anything. We still took our spots at the end of each line and recited the cheers, just like normal. When everyone else departed for their daily tasks, Chatot approached us with today's mission.

"Ah, you two. As I believe I mentioned yesterday, the Guildmaster has a special mission for your team. An exploration mission, in fact," Chatot began. He paused for a few seconds, probably expecting Crest to interrupt him, before continuing, "Open your wonder map."

I used a vine to retrieve our map from the treasure bag and Crest unfurled it in front of us. He was so excited, I half expected him to tear the map with how quickly he opened it. This was our first exploration mission; the one thing Crest has wanted to do since we formed a team. Between that and our success yesterday, even I could barely contain myself.

Chatot pointed to a spot on the map. "This is where you will be exploring. Follow this trail, and you will eventually reach a waterfall. Your mission is to investigate that waterfall. Any discovery made, no matter how small, will be considered a successful exploration. Barring that, I expect a thorough report on the area. The Guildmaster will review your report and decide whether or not your examination of the waterfall was sufficient. Are there any questions?"

Chatot actually did leave us time to respond, but we had no questions to ask. Crest was shaking with anticipation though, so Chatot left us to our preparations. We made our way to Treasure Town and bought two oran berries and a sleep seed from the Kecleon Shop, then put our remaining Poke in the Duskull Bank before we left for the exploration.

Following our map, it didn't take long to reach the waterfall we were supposed to investigate. The trail Chatot mentioned led straight to it. In fact, the path ended in a small cliff at the base of the waterfall.

"Well, it looks like we're here," Crest said, admiring the power of the falling water. I was just as awestruck. Simply standing near the downpour was a difficult task. I found myself wondering if Crest's Water type attacks would ever be this powerful.

"Looks like it," I answered to Crest, "but where are we supposed to start?"

"At the waterfall, of course!" an unfamiliar voice answered me. Surprised and confused, we looked around for the source of the voice until an Omanyte crawled up from the cliff in front of us. "Are you two explorers too?"

"Of course we are!" Crest replied excitedly, "Our guild sent us to explore around this waterfall. What about you?"

"I'm here on my own accord," the Omanyte answered. "I love to explore water-themed mystery dungeons and heard a rumor there was one around here. Haven't found anything yet, but I know there has to be something. Anyway, you two have names or should I just call you Piplup and Chikorita?"

This time I answered, "We do have names. I'm Brandon and that's Crest."

Omanyte gave me a strange look before introducing herself. "Well, my name is Spiral. Not to sound rude, but do you have some sort of speech impairment? It was a bit difficult to understand you there."

That explained the weird look. I knew my Pokesh was far from perfect, but was it really that bad? "I'm fluent in Knownun, not Pokesh. Don't bother asking why, because I don't know. I lost my memory a short while ago," I said, this time in Knownun.

"In any case, why don't we work together?" Crest suggested. "Since we're both exploring this area anyway, it would be easier on all of us."

"I don't see why not," Spiral agreed. "The path here made me think there might be something under the waterfall, but nothing has come up yet."

"Under the waterfall seems unlikely to me, but maybe there's something behind it," I suggested. "Either way, I think you have the right idea by following the path." I took a step forward in an attempt to see through the waterfall. Unfortunately, I got a little too close; some rushing water splashed upward and threw me away from the cliff. When I tried to get back to my feet I was overcome by a dizzy feeling.

Crest rushed over to me. "Are you okay? The waterfall got you pretty good there."

"Honestly, don't go underestimating water just because you're a Grass type," Spiral chastised.

Meanwhile I was just trying to recover from the blast. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath only to be greeted by another vision. It was a bit difficult to make out, but the vision showed someone jumping through the waterfall to find a cave on the other side. When I opened my eyes the dizzy feeling faded. "There is definitely something behind the waterfall."

Spiral was skeptical of my claim. "And what makes you so sure of that, exactly? Were you able to see past the water before it hit you?"

"Well, no," I tried to explain, "I just had some sort of vision about it. That vision showed me a cave behind the waterfall."

That was pretty much the best explanation I could give, but I could tell Spiral wasn't convinced. Even Crest was hesitant to believe me, and he knew about my previous visions. He decided to question me further. "Not that I don't trust you Brandon, but if you're suggesting we jump through the waterfall, I'd like to _know_ that there is a cave back there. Imagine what would happen if you were wrong; I might be able to swim out of that current on my own, but you would probably be in a lot of trouble."

"Of course I know that, but it shouldn't be too difficult to prove there's a cave," I reasoned. In an attempt to prove my point, I used Razor Leaf on the waterfall. Unfortunately, the attack was too weak to get through, instead getting swept into the river beneath us.

Spiral was understandably unimpressed by my performance. "Seriously Brandon, there's more to life than type matchups. Watch this: Ancient Power!" she exclaimed before launching three rocks straight through the rushing water. The impact was just enough for us to catch a glimpse of the hidden cavern.

"Well, regardless of my inexperience, it seems I was right," I said.

"Okay, but how do we get back there?" Crest questioned.

"Jump through it, obviously. If my Ancient Power could get through, we should be able to, too," Spiral answered. I had my doubts though. Sure, the figure in my vision jumped through the waterfall, and Spiral could probably make it, but Crest and I were much weaker than she appeared to be.

Crest had the same thoughts. "Jump through it? No way, that's way too scary! There has to be something else we can do."

"I thought you said you were explorers," Spiral responded. "If you want to explore that cave, then jumping is the fastest and easiest way to reach it."

"This is our first exploration," I explained. "You might be able to get past the waterfall, but you're also much stronger than we are."

Spiral seemed a bit surprised to hear that. "You're rookies? Could have fooled me, since you found the place so quickly. Still, I guess I could help you through the waterfall. Just jump through when I use Ancient Power and you should make it easily."

That sounded like a decent plan to me, but Crest seemed hesitant to jump. Still, between my vision and Spiral's confidence, I suspected we would have little trouble reaching the cave. "In that case, I guess I'll go first. Just tell me when to jump," I said as I walked near the cliff.

"Alright then, ready?" Spiral answered, preparing her Ancient Power. "Go now!"

I leapt forward and, thanks to Spiral's rocks, made it past the waterfall. Unfortunately, I hadn't expected to get through so easily, and as a result had a pretty rough landing. You would think that I could have landed on at least one of my four legs, but no. I tumbled forward a short distance before coming to a stop. At least I wasn't injured.

"Hey Brandon, are you alright?" Crest called from outside.

"Yeah, just lost my balance. There's actually a lot of space back here," I shouted back. A few minutes later, Crest joined me in the cave, a little shaken from the jump but otherwise completely fine. Spiral quickly followed, though instead of using Ancient Power she just jumped through the waterfall shell first. With everyone here we began to explore.

"Just as I thought, it looks like this is the entrance to a mystery dungeon," Spiral noted.

"What do you think is at the end?" Crest asked.

That was a good question. There could be anything, or even nothing, past the dungeon, so I gave the safest answer I could think of. "Water."

Crest just laughed it off. "Well, I hope it's at least a bit more exciting than that. Let's just start exploring already."

The dungeon itself was not much of a challenge. Most of the hostiles were Water types, so it was a great chance for me to catch up to Crest after Mt. Bristle gave me so much trouble. Even without my Razor Leaf, Spiral was much stronger than any of the enemies here. Thanks to her help, we didn't need to use any of our items. We even found a reviver seed and two blast seeds as we explored.

The ease at which we explored gave us a great chance to just have fun and get to know each other. "So, where are you two from? I've never seen a Piplup or Chikorita around here before," Spiral asked.

"We're from Treasure Town," I answered. "It's actually not that far from here."

"Okay, but what about before that? I mean, it seems like there should be more Chikorita than just you if you've lived here a long time," she continued.

I wasn't sure how to answer that. From what I could tell nobody knew about humans except for me, so explaining my true origin was probably more trouble than it was worth. "Like I said before, I lost my memory. I don't know where I was before Treasure Town."

"Oh yeah, sorry about that. What about you, Crest?" Spiral asked. Come to think of it, I didn't know where Crest was from either.

He was a bit hesitant to answer though, as if he was hiding something about his past. "I'm from Blizzard Island," he eventually answered.

"Blizzard Island?" Spiral repeated. "Isn't that part of the Sea of Wonders?"

"Yes," he answered simply, "What about you, where are you from?" Evidently Crest didn't want to talk about his hometown.

"I'm from Brine Cave," Spiral replied, "but I haven't been there in quite a while. Been busy exploring, you know? Besides, explorers often mistake me for a hostile when I'm near home."

Speaking of exploring, it wasn't long before we reached the end of the dungeon. We found ourselves in an open room with multi-colored gems scattered across the floor. While Spiral and I admired the room, Crest ran ahead to a massive pink gem half buried in a wall.

"Brandon, look at this! Imagine if we brought this back to the guild with us," he said, already trying to retrieve the crystal.

"I don't know, it looks pretty stuck to me," I said as I approached the wall. Extending a vine, I tried to move the gem even a little bit, but to no avail. I did, however, feel a familiar dizziness when I retracted my vine.

By now I knew that the dizzy feeling meant I was going to have a vision, so I closed my eyes to focus. Suddenly, I saw a flash of white light accompanied by a sharp ringing sound. When it faded, I saw the vision much more clearly than any of the previous ones. A Wigglytuff entered this room, approached the giant gem, and was washed away by a sudden flood of water. The vision ended with another flash of light, and I woke up as if nothing happened.

My mind was racing after the vision ended. I was sure that the Wigglytuff I saw was the Guildmaster, which all but confirmed my previous theories about him. He was probably the pokemon in my previous vision too. But where did the water come from? The only thing here was that crystal Crest was messing with...

Everything suddenly made sense when I heard a clicking sound from the wall, followed by a low rumbling noise. "Um… what was that?" Crest asked.

"The gem was trapped!" I exclaimed. "We need to get away!"

"Away from what?" Spiral questioned.

I didn't have to answer though; the tidal wave was practically on top of us before I could say anything.

* * *

Just as I finished my question we were hit by a massive wave of water. Normally this would not be a problem for me; my heavy shell can protect me from almost anything. But this time, I was caught completely off guard. This dungeon was easy, and we were at the exit. We should have been safe!

As I was swept up by the current, I lost track of the pokemon I was exploring with. If I couldn't handle this current, they were probably completely helpless. Even a Piplup wasn't _that _strong of a swimmer. My thoughts were confirmed when the water launched us into the air, where I could see the utter chaos of our situation. They were still recovering from the force of the wave and hadn't even noticed we were airborne.

I hadn't fully processed what had happened either; we were moving too quickly to make sense of our surroundings. Instead, I just set up a Protect shield when I knew we were nearing the ground. I was pretty sure we all had the defenses to survive the fall, but the shield would help soften the landing. Luckily Crest and Brandon were close enough to be encased in the shield too.

To my surprise, our crash landing turned out to be somewhat soft. We landed in a hot spring, and my shield, or more appropriately now my bubble, was floating on the water's surface. The barrier quickly faded, dropping us into the warm water below.

Crest wasted no time running out of the hot spring, probably because he was used to swimming in cold water, but Brandon just stayed put. "What… just happened?" Crest asked.

"You sprung a trap that washed us to… well wherever we are now," Brandon answered.

"We're at Treasure Springs," I explained, "a hot spring not far from Treasure Town."

"Well now," an older voice called out, "you certainly know how to make an entrance, don't you Spiral?"

"Hey Torkoal! Sorry to 'drop in' like that. My last adventure didn't end so well," I responded cheerfully.

Torkoal chuckled at my comment. "I can see that. Why don't you and your friends rest here for a while? Your tales always seem to liven up this ol' place."

"I think I'll pass, I hate hot water," Crest answered. "Besides, we need to get back to the guild."

Brandon was a bit disappointed. "The water isn't that bad, but you're right. We really should get going."

"Well, I'm going to stay at the spring for a while," I said. "but I'm sure we'll meet again. I'm a bit of a regular here and often go to Treasure Town for supplies, so see you around I guess."

"Yeah, see you later," Crest replied as the pair left.

As I took my usual spot in the spring, Torkoal turned to me with a smile and asked, "So, just how did you end up in the sky?"


	9. Chapter 8: Analysis

Author's Note:

Hey everyone, it's time for another Wigglytuff chapter! This one was a ton of fun to write, especially with Brandon and Wigglytuff trying to spy on each other. It also gave me a chance to reference Gates to Infinity, which I eventually plan to write as a sequel to this story. Even if it's a small detail, it helps make all the PMD games feel connected. But you're here for Explorers, not Gates, so on with the chapter!

* * *

"So, let me get this straight: You met a more experienced explorer at the waterfall, and with her help discovered an entire mystery dungeon behind it. Then, at the end of the dungeon, you came across a room full of valuable gems, only for one to set off a trap that washed all three of you to the hot spring. Is that the gist of your report?" Chatot summarized my explanation of today's events.

That was pretty much it. If I did miss anything, Brandon probably wasn't going to bring it up. After all, Chatot still didn't know he wasn't fluent in Pokesh, and he was trapped in his own head again anyway. "That's everything," I confirmed, "but it really sucks that we couldn't bring back any of the gems."

"Regardless, it would seem your exploration was a massive success. Why, the existence of a mystery dungeon behind the waterfall is a huge discovery, and you even proved that you can work well with other explorers. Your efforts are nothing to be ashamed of," Chatot explained.

"Um, Chatot?" Brandon spoke up, choosing his words very carefully, "I know this sounds strange, but I suspect the Guildmaster has been to Waterfall Cave before."

That seemed to catch Chatot off guard. Actually, I was just as surprised. Brandon never mentioned his suspicions to me, but he must be pretty confident in them to actually say anything about it in front of Chatot. "No, no, no, that's preposterous! Surely the Guildmaster would not have sent you to explore somewhere he has already been to," Chatot responded frantically. Upon seeing that Brandon wasn't convinced, he turned to the door behind him. "I will confirm this with the Guildmaster. You two wait here."

* * *

While Chatot reviewed Team Strength's performance for today, I was busy with my preparations for the upcoming expedition. All of our other field members had successful explorations today, resulting in Sunflora and Loudred securing spots on the expedition party. That just left two empty spots to be filled. As for who those spots would go to, I was clueless. Everyone was working hard, but at this point I needed to round out the team instead of making participation a reward for everyone's efforts.

Normally I wouldn't worry too much about perfecting the exploration team, but the Expedition Society was counting on us to help with their Nexus Project. Apparently we weren't the only ones Ampharos asked for help; explorers all over the world would be contributing. Some researchers on the Mist Continent even found a way to create their own mystery dungeons! With the guild's reputation on the line, we just had to make some sort of discovery for the project.

I was pulled away from my thoughts when Chatot entered my chamber. "Oh, Chatot, has Team Strength finished their report already?"

"More or less, yes," he replied, "but there's something you need to know about their report. Brandon somehow knew that you've already been to Waterfall Cave."

Were Chatot anyone else I would have tried to hide my surprise. "How is that possible? We've never properly mapped that dungeon, and you're the only other pokemon who even knows it exists!"

"They reported receiving help in their exploration. Perhaps some other explorer knew about the dungeon, or at least knew that you had explored it?" Chatot reasoned.

"No, I was alone on that exploration," I responded, quickly losing myself in theories. Clearly Brandon was on to me, but at least I had a better idea of who he was now.

"What should I tell them then? They seem hesitant to take credit for the discovery now, we need some sort of explanation as to why you sent them to that dungeon," Chatot pushed.

I thought for a moment. From the sound of things, Crest was still clueless about me, but Brandon knew I was hiding something. I needed a response that would fit my cheerful character without coming across as overexaggerated. "Tell them I told you this: 'Memories, memories, sweet memories. Yes, yes, when I think back on it, maybe I did go there once.' That should offer a suitable explanation."

Chatot took a moment to memorize my explanation before responding, "Certainly, Guildmaster. I will give them your story and dismiss the pair for the night."

I returned to my thoughts when Chatot left the room. Brandon was clever, I'd give him that. He somehow deduced that there was more to me than my usual, cheerful persona. How he did that I wasn't sure, but it probably had something to do with the disaster that has been Crest's training. I've been so focused on fixing his confidence that their team has been taking on missions far too dangerous for their level. A careless mistake, but I didn't think anyone would pay it any attention.

In retrospect I should have been keeping a closer eye on Brandon; up until now I'd mostly neglected his training. Perhaps I should add him to the expedition party. He was pretty inexperienced, but it would help me track his progress and give me a chance to demonstrate my fake personality to him. Considering this idea, I read over my current list: Bidoof, Crest, Sunflora, and Loudred. Adding Brandon to that group would give us three rookies and two Grass types, which is not exactly a balanced team. Besides, I wanted to see what Crest could do on his own.

Leaving Brandon behind had its own set of problems though. He still wouldn't be getting the experience he needed, and it would reinforce any suspicions he had about me. At least it would help continue Crest's growth. Ultimately, training my recruits was more important than hiding my true identity, and Crest needed specialized practice more than Brandon did. Brandon just seemed to need basic strength training.

It wasn't long before Chimecho called the guild to the dining hall for dinner. Throughout the meal, I tried to decide what my best course of action was. First of all, I had to confirm my suspicions about Brandon. The best way to do that is by seeing how he thinks myself instead of through Chatot…

"Guildmaster?" Once again Chatot tore me from my thoughts. "You know that dinner is over now, right? The recruits have retired to their rooms for the night."

Chatot was right, the dining hall was completely empty. "Oops! Guess I was lost in thought, huh? Perfect apples do tend to do that to me," I half lied. Luckily the guild was used to my obsession with these things; I doubt anyone even noticed I was acting strange. Of course, I had more serious matters to attend to than dinner, so I stopped dancing my apple on my head and ate the whole thing in a single bite.

"Er, right," Chatot responded, only mildly surprised by my actions. "Anyway, I need to know what Team Strength's mission will be tomorrow. I assume you have something in mind?"

Actually, I hadn't thought of anything for them to do yet. "Sorry Chatot, I've been a bit preoccupied. Give me a moment, I'll think of something before tomorrow's assembly. For now, I'd like you to invite Brandon and Crest to my chamber. I want to talk to them myself and let them know about the expedition a bit early."

"Are you sure that's wise? We don't want to be giving one team special treatment," Chatot questioned me.

"I have my reasons. I'll leave most of the explaining to you, I just need to see how they react," I answered.

"Very well then," Chatot replied, "We will meet you in your room soon. I suggest you be in your usual spot when we arrive, I think Brandon may be suspicious of your personality."

"My thoughts exactly. That's why I want you to be there." With that I left the dining hall to wait for Chatot in my room.

It wasn't long before Chatot was outside my door. "Guildmaster, I've brought Team Strength, just as you asked," he said upon entering the room.

This was my chance to sell Brandon on my childlike personality, so I made sure to be extra cheerful when greeting him. "Hiya!" I said as I quickly turned around to face my recruits, "Your team went through a lot today. Yes, a lot-lot!" As I spoke I tried to watch Brandon's reaction without being too obvious about it. Just as I expected, he was analyzing my every move.

Luckily, Chatot knew of my little experiment and spoke up to keep Brandon off balance. "Guildmaster, perhaps it would be best to keep things brief. It is getting quite late, after all."

"Aww, you're no fun!" Even that wasn't enough to shake Brandon's focus. "And we're here to talk about something exciting! The guild will be mounting a full expedition soon."

"An expedition?" Crest responded excitedly. Meanwhile Brandon appeared mildly confused, possibly wondering why we were telling them this.

Things were not going well, so I let Chatot take over from here. "That's right. The guild will be exploring someplace far away. It's much more difficult than exploring our local area, so we will only bring a select few pokemon from the guild on the expedition. Ordinarily, new recruits would never be considered for such a mission-"

"But you two have been working so hard, we've decided to consider you in the list of candidates!" I cut in.

Chatot pretended to be annoyed by my outburst. "Ahem. As I was saying, your performance over the last few days has been quite impressive, and the expedition team is yet to be finalized. Keep working hard, and you might be picked. I believe that is all."

"Work hard and try even harder!" I exclaimed. To my relief, Brandon was no longer focused on me, but instead appeared to be lost in thought, possibly even thinking about the expedition. At least, I hoped that was what was on his mind.

"That is all, you are dismissed," Chatot finished for me.

The rookie team left the room, with Crest looking ready to burst from excitement. No matter how hard I tried though, I couldn't seem to determine what Brandon was thinking when he left. I knew one thing though: I either threw him off my trail or confirmed his suspicions about me. I was sure he was convinced one way or the other, I just didn't know which way that was.

"So, did it work?" Chatot asked me.

"Not sure," I answered, "but whatever he thinks, it won't be changed after tonight. Have them train at Marowak's Dojo tomorrow, they've done enough missions for now."

"Training, huh? I suppose they are a bit on the weak side," Chatot reasoned. "Anyway, how have your preparations been going? I assume you're at least ready to let the guild know of our plans for an expedition?"

"I'll make the official announcement tomorrow morning, though I haven't decided exactly who should go yet," I answered. "What about your preparations?"

Chatot smiled proudly, "Ahead of schedule, actually. We will be ready to depart in two or three days. Of course, we still leave on your command."

"That's good. If you finish your preparations early, go ahead and take some time off until the expedition starts. Or after the expedition, if we end up leaving early. Anyway, that will be all Chatot. You are dismissed, get some rest."

* * *

"I can't believe we have a chance to go on an expedition!" Crest said as we left Wigglytuff's chamber. "We really are explorers now. Doing missions, exploring new places, and working as a team, and we only just started too. This really is amazing!"

"But we didn't explore a new place today, remember?" I said. Not that I wanted to hurt Crest's enthusiasm, but there was no denying that today's mission was a fool's errand. "Wigglytuff had already been to Waterfall Cave. He set us up."

Crest didn't let that get him down though. "He just forgot that he had been there. You heard what Chatot said. No one really knows how Wigglytuff thinks," Crest cut himself off as a realization hit him. "Except you, apparently. You somehow knew about his exploration before even Chatot."

"Because I had another vision," I explained. "Wigglytuff set off the same tidal wave trap that you did."

"Another vision?" Crest repeated. By now we were back in our room, so talk of my strange power would not be overheard. "And it came true, just like the first one."

Suddenly a realization hit me. "Crest, that vision didn't come true! It was a vision of the past," I said.

"Hey, you're right," he agreed. Now he had a thought, "You've had four visions now, right? Do you think we could find any patterns as to how they work yet?"

Patterns? I thought about it for a moment. Of course, there was the dizzy feeling, but that really didn't help us. I tried thinking back to what I was doing leading up to each vision. The first one was at the Kecleon Shop, then after seeing Drowzee, examining the waterfall, and trying to get a crystal. As far as I could tell there were no patterns there. Maybe I was looking in the wrong place?

Crest was also thinking hard, but he actually came up with something. "Hey, your visions always occur after you touch something, right? First Azurill's apple, then when Drowzee bumped into you, and at Waterfall Cave you touched both the waterfall and the gem in the last room."

"So you're suggesting that when I touch something, I can see a vision about its past or future?" I summarized. It did make some sense and was satisfyingly simple, but I still had almost no control over when I had visions.

"Well, yeah. At least, it's an idea," Crest answered.

"But I don't always get a vision when I touch something," I thought out loud, "so I guess it's not a very reliable power. Still, it is something to try if we ever get stuck somewhere."

"I guess so," Crest agreed.

"Anyway, we should go to sleep. With how busy the last few days have been, I don't think we can expect a break anytime soon," I said, turning over in my bed.

To be honest, I wasn't very interested in exploring my visions right now. Instead, I wanted to figure out what Wigglytuff was hiding. During our little meeting earlier, I couldn't tell if he was studying me or actually as mindless as he appeared. He seemed to stop analyzing me when I wasn't as focused on him, but how can I confirm how he acted when he wasn't the focus of my attention?

I realized that if I wanted to know for sure what Wigglytuff was thinking, I would have to ask him directly. Of course, that also required convincing him to cooperate with me, which seemed to be what got us into this situation in the first place. Once again it crossed my mind that I might be overthinking things, but until one of my visions was proven wrong, I was going to treat all of them as fact. I knew I saw Wigglytuff in that dungeon, I just needed to prove it.


	10. Chapter 9: Overwhelming Poison

Author's Note:

So, Brandon has psychic powers, just breezed through a dungeon, has proven himself one of the cleverest pokemon in the guild, and his only "weaknesses" are that he can't read and speaks a dead language? Yeah, it's definitely time to knock him down a few pegs. He's only level nine, it doesn't take much to give him trouble.

* * *

"Don't underestimate water just because you're a Grass type." That was the advice Spiral gave me yesterday, and now it was easy to see why. I woke up in the morning somehow both wide awake and completely exhausted at the same time. My entire body was sore from the adventure in Waterfall Cave, but there was little I could do about that. At least I still woke up before Loudred got here.

'It's going to be a long day,' I thought, putting on the treasure bag. Hopefully today's mission would be an easy one.

I woke Crest up and we took our spots in the meeting room. Just like last time, we were a bit early. That left me some time to contemplate why I was so much more tired after a simple exploration mission than after nearly losing our battle against Drowzee. Maybe it had something to do with the healing I received after each mission. Crest and I both got treatment from Chimecho's Heal Pulse after fighting Drowzee, but yesterday we returned to the guild without any injuries. If simple healing was the only difference, maybe an oran berry would be enough to make me feel better.

"Guildmaster, the guild is in full attendance," I heard Chatot say from the front of the room. I was so tired that I hadn't even noticed that everyone was here. Upon closer inspection, Wigglytuff was already in the meeting area, so Chatot's statement was only meant to formally start the morning briefing.

Wigglytuff took over the meeting from there. "Thank you, Chatot. Before we get to the morning cheers, I have an announcement to make. Our guild will be going on an expedition soon!"

The moment Wigglytuff said "expedition" the guild members began to chatter amongst themselves. Sure, Crest and I already knew about the expedition, but it was news to everyone else. Looking forward I saw that Chatot was a bit flustered by everyone's less-than-professional reactions to the announcement. Normally I'd try to gauge Wigglytuff's thoughts as well, but I was too tired to care right now. Besides, I was already pretty sure I had him figured out.

When Chatot recovered from his initial disappointment, he refocused the meeting. "Everyone, please, quiet down! You can talk freely _after_ the briefing is over. Until then, you are all expected to give the Guildmaster your undivided attention." That seemed to shut everyone up.

"Of course, not everyone will get to go on the expedition," Wigglytuff continued as though nothing had happened. "In fact, we haven't decided who will be part of the exploration party yet. But don't let that get you down! Instead, think of it as a reason to work extra hard!"

"We will make more announcements regarding the expedition over the next few days," Chatot explained. "Like the Guildmaster said, you should all work hard to be picked for the expedition."

The meeting finished with the usual cheers, and everyone dispersed to their daily tasks. Crest and I approached Chatot for our assignment.

"Ah, you two," he said, "your task today is to train at Marowak's Dojo in Treasure Town."

"The dojo?" Crest responded. "Does that mean we don't have a specific mission today?"

"Correct. I will not be reviewing your performance today, so you are free to use your time at the dojo however you see fit. How long you train is also your own decision, but remember that the Guildmaster is monitoring your progress," Chatot explained.

"In that case we'll head there now," Crest said. "Come on Brandon, let's go."

Of course, I didn't say anything in response; the less I spoke in front of Chatot the better. Instead I followed Crest up the ladder, silently thanking whoever designed it to spiral like a staircase. I couldn't imagine trying to climb a normal ladder, especially with how sore I was from yesterday.

We reached the upper floor and were about to climb the second ladder when Crest noticed something. Or rather, someone. "Hey, Brandon?" he asked me, "do those two look familiar to you?"

I looked where he was pointing to find a Zubat and Koffing in front of the job board. "It's those thieves from the beach, right?" I answered quietly.

"That's what I thought," Crest replied, "What are they doing here?"

I didn't have an answer, but Koffing noticed us before I could say anything anyway. "Whoa-ho-ho! Look who it is, Zubat. The wimp from the beach!"

"What's a wimp like you doing in a guild?" Zubat cackled.

"We're training to be a professional exploration team," Crest answered, barely containing his anger.

"We?" Koffing questioned before noticing me. "Oh, that weakling Chikorita is still with you. Pretty foolish, if you ask me."

The two Poison types dragged Crest away from the ladder and cornered him in front of the job board. Suddenly very worried, I looked around the room for anyone who could help us. To my surprise, I saw Sunflora leading everyone else down the ladder to the lower floor. That was strange; even if they didn't want to get involved, I was sure Chimecho worked on this floor and Sunflora did field missions. They shouldn't have any reason to go to the bottom floor. Something was wrong, I could feel it in my… leaf? Since when could I do that?

While I was looking for potential help, Crest was still cornered. "Listen here, Piplup," Zubat began, "You have no guts and your friend has no skill. What makes you think you could possibly make a good team?"

"Yeah, from the looks of it a shopkeeper would make a better explorer than you," Koffing added, referring to the stone Crest wore around his neck.

By now Crest was starting to panic. He darted past his assailants and rejoined me by the ladder. Actually, he stood slightly in front of me, probably because he knew I wouldn't be able to defend myself if a battle broke out. "I-It doesn't matter that we're weak, w-we're training here to get stronger," he said, attempting to dismiss what Koffing and Zubat had said. "Even now we're working hard to be p-picked for the guild's expedition!"

"An expedition? How interesting," Koffing responded.

Meanwhile, that feeling in my leaf kept getting stronger and stronger. I knew that if we didn't leave soon, something bad was going to happen. I just had to convince Crest that we needed to leave-

"Hey you! Out of the way!" Before I could react I was hit by an attack, and everything went black.

* * *

I watched helplessly as my partner tumbled across the floor, coming to a stop near the center of the room. That combination of Night Slash and Poison Gas looked like it hurt, and I desperately wanted to make sure Brandon was okay, but I couldn't. I was too scared to move.

"Hey!" the attacker, a Skuntank, shouted at me, "Move it. Or do you want to end up like that wimp over there?"

I took a few terrified steps backward, not wanting to do anything that would anger someone that powerful. Zubat and Koffing didn't have any problems with him though.

"Keh-heh-heh, you got him good, boss!" Zubat said.

"Yeah, you really showed them," Koffing added.

"Yeah, whatever. Find any good jobs on the board?" Skuntank asked his underlings.

"Nothing on the boards…" Koffing answered.

"…But we did find something that has the potential to be big," Zubat finished. "We'll tell you about it outside."

Skuntank was apparently happy with that report. "In that case, let's go. No point wasting time here."

The three of them quickly left up the ladder, and I fell to the floor, exhausted from how scared I was. I didn't stay down long though; looking to the center of the room I saw that Brandon hadn't moved since he was attacked. I ran over to make sure he was okay.

"Brandon? Hey, Brandon, come on, wake up!" I said as I tried to shake him awake. It didn't work though; he was out cold.

I was trying to figure out what to do when I heard someone coming up the ladder. "Are you sure they're gone?" a voice asked.

"I'm sure," someone else answered, "My leaves are sensitive to poisons like that. I know when they are and aren't here."

By now I determined the voices to be Chimecho and Sunflora. They reached the top of the ladder, and upon seeing Brandon unconscious, rushed over to us before I could ask them for help.

"Oh my gosh, what happened?" Sunflora asked me.

"He was attacked by a Skuntank," I answered. "And I can't wake him up."

"Let me see him," Chimecho said. I thought she was going to use Heal Pulse, but instead she levitated Brandon in front of her to examine his wounds. It was then that I noticed a bit of red on the side of Brandon's face. "Well, he should recover just fine. That cut might need some attention, but the rest can be fixed with a few berries. I'm going to bring him to the kitchen, it has everything we need to patch him up. Sunflora, do you mind helping me? You're much more familiar with how poison affects Grass types than I am."

"Of course I'll help! What kind of explorer would I be if I didn't help injured pokemon?" Sunflora answered.

Chimecho continued, "I'll need your help too, Crest, though I'm sure I don't have to ask for it."

"It would be harder to convince me to _not _help," I replied.

With Chimecho levitating Brandon, we made our way to the lower floor. Chimecho then led us past the dining hall and into the kitchen, where I saw shelves covered in various berries, seeds, apples, and gummis. Placing Brandon on the ground, Chimecho hovered to a few of the shelves and retrieved a seed and some oran berries.

"Wait, is that a reviver seed? Why do you have those in the kitchen?" I asked.

"Since most of the foods we eat have healing properties, the guild keeps most of its supplies here. This is as much a medical room as it is a kitchen," Chimecho answered.

"We're going to need pecha berries," Sunflora said, taking the reviver seed from Chimecho. "Status effects tend to linger when they infect a Grass type's leaf."

As Chimecho returned to the shelves Sunflora fed the reviver seed to Brandon. The seed worked almost instantly, and Brandon began to wake up.

"Uhg… What happened?" he asked, wincing slightly as a wave of purple sparks washed over him. I handed Brandon an oran berry, and he eagerly accepted it.

"You were attacked by a Skuntank," I answered. "A combination of Night Slash and Poison Gas. Apparently he works with Zubat and Koffing."

"I'm so sorry," Sunflora said, "I wanted to warn you about him, but you and Crest were already caught up in the trouble his team causes."

"Wait, you knew he was coming?" I asked.

Sunflora nodded. "Grass types are very sensitive to their environments. I could feel his poisons in my leaves."

"I guess that explains the odd feeling I had before I was attacked," Brandon cut in. "Wish I knew that sooner though." He stopped talking as another wave of purple sparks hit him.

Chimecho levitated a pecha berry to Brandon. "Here, eat this. It will help with the poison," she said before once again returning to the shelves.

While Brandon ate the berry, I continued to ask questions. "If Skuntank is always causing trouble, why is he allowed in the guild? I thought Diglett and Loudred kept pokemon like him out."

Sunflora answered my question, "As much as everyone hates them, those three are still an exploration team. They usually come in, grab a few high-paying missions, and leave, so we had no grounds to kick them out. This was the first time they ever attacked someone directly."

"Unfortunately, the work they do is also profitable for the guild," Chimecho continued. "Chatot is convinced they have good intentions. He wouldn't believe us if we told him they attacked you." She gave Brandon another oran berry and held up some sort of cloth.

"What is that?" I asked.

"A plain ribbon. I want you to use Bubble on it," Chimecho answered.

Attack a ribbon? That didn't make much sense to me, but I was sure there was a good reason for it. I shot a few bubbles at the ribbon, but nothing seemed to happen.

"Good, thank you Crest," Chimecho said, leaving me even more confused. She then turned to Brandon. "Now, hold still, I'm going to clean that cut on your cheek. It might sting a bit."

I suddenly understood why Chimecho asked me to use Bubble; she just needed the ribbon to be wet. Brandon flinched slightly when the cloth reached him, but that was it. When Chimecho removed the ribbon, I saw that the cut actually quite small and had already stopped bleeding.

"Looks like that should do it," Chimecho said. "Unless there's something about Grass types I don't know about. Sunflora?"

"No, he should be fine," Sunflora answered, "Just take a few extra oran and pecha berries in case the poison is still lingering."

Chimecho levitated two oran and three pecha berries into our treasure bag. "Alright then. All of you should be careful on your missions today, I'm going back to my job at team assembly."

"Team assembly?" Brandon asked.

Chimecho looked surprised for a moment before chuckling to herself. "That's right, I forgot you two are a new team. You see, it's my job to keep track of the members of all the teams that take jobs from our guild's job boards. Using team assembly, or as most pokemon call it 'Chimecho Assembly,' you can designate a team leader, both generally and for individual explorations. You can also recruit new team members. Come by my desk later if you want to know more, right now we need to get to our jobs for the day."

"Yeah, I really don't want Chatot to think we're slacking off," I agreed, "but we will come by when we have time."

"Okay, see you later then," Chimecho said as she left.

Sunflora also got up to leave. "I better get going too, I have a rescue mission in Oran Forest and really shouldn't keep my client waiting. What are you doing today?"

"We're just going to train at Marowak's Dojo, so we aren't in too much of a hurry," Brandon answered.

"Well, good luck anyway," she said, leaving just me and Brandon in the kitchen.

"We might not be in a hurry, but we also aren't getting anything done by just waiting around in the guild," I said. "Let's head to Treasure Town before Chatot sees we're still here."


	11. Chapter 10: Underwhelming Poison

Author's Note:

Welcome to the filler chapter that exists to cut out filler days! Ironic as it is, this is a good chance to correct Brandon's moveset and move on to story missions quickly. Besides, I can't bully Brandon two chapters in a row. That would be mean :)

* * *

As we made our way to Marowak's Dojo, I couldn't help but be impressed by how quickly my body recovered from injuries. The cut Skuntank gave me was little more than a scratch now, and the oran berries used to treat it also helped with my soreness from this morning. I felt completely revitalized despite the rough start to my day.

"So, what exactly are we going to do when we reach the dojo?" I asked Crest.

"I don't actually know," Crest answered, "but it will be some kind of training. Marowak will probably have an idea of what we should do."

"I hope it isn't too difficult, today's been enough of a mess already," I continued.

It didn't take long to reach the dojo. Upon entering, we were in a big, empty room. The center of the room was a battlefield, and there was some sort of cave in the back that led underground.

"Welcome to the dojo," Marowak called out from the center of the battlefield. "I take it you two are here for some training?"

"That was the plan," I said as Crest and I approached the dojo's master.

Marowak gave us a friendly smile, revealing he wasn't as tough as he first appeared. "In that case, I need to know how strong you are. Do either of you happen to know your levels?"

Crest checked his badge, but I already knew how strong I was; I spent most of Waterfall Cave watching my level increase. Sure, it was just a number, but I still found the measurements my badge could read fascinating. "I'm level nine," I answered.

Crest quickly followed, "And I'm level ten."

"Oh, good! I see you have team badges. If you don't mind, could I see those for a moment? I can use their readings to give you appropriate training," Marowak explained. We handed him the badges and he took a moment to examine them. "Levels nine and ten, yet you only know three moves each. I'm going to check something with Electivire, so you can wait here for a moment. Feel free to use the battlefield until I get back."

Marowak returned our badges and left the dojo, leaving me and Crest on our own. "I don't think he'll be gone long, so let's not start training until Marowak comes back," Crest suggested.

"No arguments here," I responded, returning my badge to its usual spot on the power band. "What should we do until then?"

Crest pinned his badge on his silver bow. "Just make sure you're ready for when the training does start. Eat some more oran or pecha berries if you need to."

"I'm fine, the berries from earlier already healed me," I said. "What about you? I was sore from yesterday's exploration, but oran berries Chimecho gave me helped."

"Sore?" Crest questioned before realizing, "Oh, from the water trap. That really isn't a problem for me. I used to swim all the time, so the only problem I had yesterday was Treasure Springs. Water should _never_ be hot."

"I thought the hot spring was nice," I said, then thought for a second. "But you did say you're from Blizzard Island. I assume it's pretty cold there?"

Crest looked upset about something, but he tried to hide it. "Could you please not go around telling pokemon where I'm from? I… don't like to talk about home."

Seems I struck a nerve. Still, Crest made it pretty clear he wouldn't talk about Blizzard Island any more than he had to, so I dropped the subject. "Okay then, I won't say anything."

We were left in an awkward silence until Marowak returned, which thankfully didn't take too long. "Alright, sorry for making you wait," he said upon reentering the dojo. "Now then, there are a few ways you can train here. The first option is to enter one of my training dungeons in the back. Alternatively, you can use this battlefield to practice battling or learn new moves."

"You can teach us new moves?" Crest asked.

"Well, kind of," Marowak explained, "According to Electivire, Chikorita should be able to learn Poison Powder. As for you, Piplup, you already know all the moves you should be able to use at your level."

Poison Powder, huh? My earlier experience with poison was far from pleasant, so I knew how effective the move _could_ be, but the battles against hostiles in mystery dungeons were usually too short for poisoning them to have much use. Still, it would be more useful than an empty move slot. "I think the best thing for me to do is learn Poison Powder, but what are you going to do?" I asked Crest.

"I'm not sure," Crest answered.

"In that case, why don't you train against him?" Marowak suggested. "You can practice dodging attacks while Chikorita tries the new move."

That sounded like a good plan to me. Although I didn't like the idea of attacking Crest, especially with poison, we had several pecha berries that could heal him. Besides, he needed to know how my attacks worked so we could battle as a team.

Crest agreed to Marowak's idea, so we moved onto the battlefield to begin the training. "Alright, so-" Marowak began before a realization stopped him. "Ah, please excuse me, but I don't believe I've gotten your names. I need to know how to address you if you're training here."

To be honest I hadn't thought much of it. Most of the pokemon in Treasure Town didn't seem to have a name, so I wasn't really expecting Marowak to ask for one in the first place. "My name is Brandon," I answered.

"I'm Crest," Crest added.

"Okay Brandon and Crest, with that out of the way, we can begin training. Crest, you just be ready to dodge Brandon's attack. Poison Powder can be a bit difficult to control, and the spores tend to scatter," Marowak instructed. "As for you, Brandon, try to focus your energy into the seeds around your neck. Think of it like using your vines, but instead of using just one or two seeds you need to use all of them."

That sounded simple enough. I tried to focus my energy without using vines, but it was difficult to tell if I was doing it right. Eventually I felt the attack form around my neck. The energy for it was weaker and less centralized than Tackle or Razor Leaf, which I guess was what distinguished Poison Powder as a status move.

Marowak continued to instruct me, "Once you think you've focused enough energy, try to release it."

I knew I had the energy for the move ready, but I wasn't sure how to control it. That became very evident when I unleashed my attack. Instead of firing toward my intended target, the purple spores I created just fell weakly around me.

"I guess that wasn't quite right," I said in an attempt to hide my embarrassment.

Crest got a quick laugh out of that. "At least it made my job easy!"

"Actually, it wasn't bad for a first attempt. Poison Powder isn't exactly an intuitive move," Marowak said. "Try again, but this time instead of relaxing to release the move, tense up. That should make the spores burst from the attack. You can practice aiming it afterwards."

I tried as Marowak suggested, and this time the Poison Powder exploded into a purple cloud around me. Still not a controlled attack, but it did get me thinking about alternative uses for the move. I could use this as a counterattack to physical hits, or maybe even a pseudo-smokescreen. A very dangerous and toxic smokescreen, anyway.

As my attack settled, I saw Crest and Marowak standing a short distance away. They must have stepped back to avoid the poison. "Hey, I actually had to dodge that one," Crest joked.

I spent the rest of the training session perfecting my new move. By the end, I could control where the attack went and how many spores there were, although larger attacks took more time to charge. We ended up using two of our pecha berries, the first because an early attack exploded uncontrollably and the second when I had mostly mastered it so Crest couldn't dodge. That was when we decided to stop for the day; I'd rather not poison my friend more than I had to.

"Well, it seems like you've got Poison Powder pretty much figured out," Marowak said as the training concluded. "Just remember that it will poison any pokemon that touches it, including teammates, and you can't use Poison Powder to poison Grass, Poison, or Steel type pokemon."

"I know, thanks for the help Marowak," I replied as Crest and I left the dojo.

Since we had no other jobs for today and it was getting late, we began to head back to the guild. "I hope you had more fun in there than I did," Crest began on our way to the guild.

"Should I remind you where we got those pecha berries in the first place?" I answered. "I just hope I don't have to poison enemies very often. Something about it just seems… cruel."

"Well, you better get used to it. After all that training, Poison Powder is your most versatile move," Crest reasoned. "As long as you aim it at hostiles we should be fine."

That was actually what was bothering me; I didn't think poison would be useful against hostiles. The only other pokemon I had any reason to fight were Team Skull, but all three of them were immune to poison. The only pokemon I could reasonably expect to use Poison Powder on were other explorers.

On the topic of Team Skull, they were on the guild's lower floor when we returned. Skuntank was talking with Chatot and Wigglytuff, and when the conversation ended the guild leaders left to Wigglytuff's room to discuss something. They didn't come out until it was time for dinner.

Crest and I did our best to avoid Team Skull, so you can imagine our frustration when we found the toxic trio sitting next to us at dinner. Sunflora and Chimecho were watching them just as closely as we were, and I could have sworn the Guildmaster appeared concerned for a brief moment. Regardless, we looked to him for an explanation.

With the entire guild waiting on him, Wigglytuff made his announcement. "Alright, friends! As you can see, we have three new friendly friends joining us for dinner. That is Exploration Team Skull, and they will be joining us on the upcoming expedition!"

"As many of you know, Team Skull is a skilled exploration team experienced with high-difficulty missions," Chatot continued, "and while they will undoubtably be a great help to us all, it would be difficult to work together without getting to know each other first. As such, Skuntank, Koffing, and Zubat will be living with us at the guild leading up to the expedition."

Half the guild pretended to be excited over what Chatot had said. Those of us who knew what happened this morning merely contained our disgust. The pokemon who attacked and poisoned me was supposed to be a new ally? I was suddenly grateful that new recruits rarely went on expeditions.

Despite everything, dinner was mostly uneventful. I was pretty tense sitting next to Skuntank, and his poisons were starting to make my leaf hurt by the time dinner finished, but he left me alone, at least for now. As everyone left the dining hall, Chimecho slipped me a pecha berry, and I saw Sunflora get one too.

Back in our room, Crest jumped on the opportunity to complain about Team Skull. "I can't believe Chatot trusts those guys. They're not explorers, they're thieves! No one even likes them, they even attacked us this morning."

"It's not like we can do anything about it," I replied, taking a bite out of the pecha berry. "Chatot doesn't know any of that, and Chimecho said he wouldn't believe us if we told him. Let's just keep our distance from them until the expedition is over and try not to cause any trouble."

"How can you be okay with this? Just being near them is painful for you and Sunflora. You both needed pecha berries after dinner because of them," Crest argued.

I finished the berry and tried to calm Crest down. "I'm just saying we need to make the best of it. The last thing we need is to get Chatot angry at us. Knowing those three, they will mess up sooner or later and Chatot will kick them out himself. Until then, we should just focus on our guild work."

"Fine," Crest conceded, "We should get some sleep. With Team Skull around, we'll need to stay alert."

"Yeah, good night Crest," I agreed.

There actually was one thing we could do about Team Skull. If I could have a vision about them, we could use it to reveal them as criminals. The problem was that I couldn't control when I had visions. Even if I could, I can't always act on what I see anyway. There's also the matter of convincing Chatot to believe me. My only option was to talk directly to Wigglytuff. I just hoped I was right about him…


	12. Chapter 11: Lost Apples

Author's Note:

It never came up until now, but I don't think pokemon would have the same calendar humans have (or have a calendar at all, for that matter). Of course, they still need to measure time somehow, so pokemon will measure time based on things they can clearly see: days, seasons (around 100 days), and years (4 seasons or roughly 400 days). With that explanation out of the way, on with the chapter!

* * *

"Crest? Hey Crest, come on, wake up, it's morning," I heard as I struggled to get out of bed. I don't think I'll ever get used to how early morning comes this far north. At least Brandon can wake me up before Loudred does.

"I seriously don't understand how you aren't tired right now," I said, finally getting up.

"Sunlight. At least, I think that's what it is," he answered. Looking toward Brandon's bed, I saw that the window lined up perfectly for the sun to shine on it in the morning. That probably would make sleeping difficult.

Although we were awake before Loudred came around, we weren't as early to the morning briefing as we usually were. Being early never did anything for us anyway, and Team Skull was there this morning too. The last thing I wanted to do was spend more time around them then I had to. The meeting went mostly the same way it always did, though Wigglytuff did mention that the expedition members would be announced soon.

With the briefing over, everyone went to their usual tasks and Chatot approached us for our assignment. "Ah, Team Strength. I have a special mission for you to do today," Chatot began. "Last night the guild's food supply dropped sharply. Specifically, our stock of perfect apples has completely disappeared. Your job is to go to Apple Woods to collect perfect apples."

"Aren't perfect apples extremely rare? How are we going to find them?" I asked.

"There is a tree at the end of the mystery dungeon that grows perfect apples. Collecting them should be easy," Chatot answered. "Despite that, I suggest you take this mission very seriously. The Guildmaster tends to get… irritable… if he doesn't have perfect apples."

So, today's mission was mostly for Wigglytuff then. That meant if we did well, he would almost certainly choose us for the expedition. "In that case, we'll get the perfect apples, no problem!" I assured my supervisor excitedly.

"I hope so, because if you don't," Chatot shuddered midsentence, "Err, best not to think about it. Just don't mess up, okay?" With that somewhat ominous warning he left us to our preparations.

Brandon and I took the ladder to the upper floor, but he stopped me before we left the guild. "Hey, since we just have an item retrieval mission today, I think now would be a good time to ask Chimecho about team assembly," he suggested.

"That's a good point, we really aren't in any rush today," I agreed. We turned away from the ladders and walked over to Chimecho's desk.

"Oh, Crest and Brandon, how are you two doing? Team Skull isn't causing trouble again, are they?" She asked when we reached her station.

"No trouble yet," I answered. "We were actually here to ask about team assembly. You mentioned something about it yesterday, right?"

"Of course! I keep track of the pokemon you recruit for your team. With my help, you can designate a team leader and track who enters certain mystery dungeons," Chimecho explained.

"What does designating a leader do?" Brandon asked. I was just as confused; we had done just fine so far without specifying a team leader.

"The leader gets to choose who can and can't join your team. To avoid potential conflicts between teammates, our guild does not allow its teams to recruit new members unless the team has a leader," Chimecho answered. "In addition, you can only change your team leader once per season, since changing leaders too often would defeat the point of having a leader in the first place. However, you can still have any pokemon you want lead individual explorations."

I guess that makes having a leader pretty important. "In that case, we should probably choose a leader," I said, "and I think we can all agree Brandon is better at leading than I am."

To my surprise, Brandon objected to that idea. "But wasn't forming a team your idea? That alone should make you leader, I think. Besides, your Pokesh is better than mine and I can still barely read footprint runes."

"If I may interrupt, that kind of thinking is why you would be a good leader, Brandon," Chimecho chimed in. "On top of that, you seem a bit more confident as an explorer than Crest. If he isn't interested in being leader, I see no reason why you shouldn't fill that role."

Being more confident than me doesn't take much. In fact, Brandon is far from a confident explorer. He just isn't as timid as I am. Still, when he realized I wasn't going to nominate myself as leader, he accepted the position. I wasn't getting out of this completely though, because the first thing he did as leader was appoint me as co-leader.

"So now that we have a leader, we can recruit new members, right?" Brandon asked as we finished reorganizing our team.

"That's right," Chimecho confirmed, "If you meet an explorer that wants to join your team, just bring them here and I'll give them a badge."

"Thanks for the help Chimecho," I said, turning to leave. "We'll see you at dinner later."

* * *

As we made our way through Apple Woods, I found myself wishing that we learned about Chimecho Assembly sooner. An extra teammate would have been a huge help here, but alas, this was our worst dungeon yet. It was filled with Bug, Poison, and Flying types to give me trouble while Crest struggled against the Grass types. I didn't see a single pokemon that didn't resist my Razor Leaf, so I had to rely on Tackle to defend myself. At least Poison Powder kept the hostiles at a distance (in the rare cases that they weren't immune to it, anyway).

Suffice to say we spent most of our time avoiding the hostiles instead of fighting them. Our collective disadvantages cost us three of our oran berries, and a Butterfree's Sleep Powder nearly forced us to use our only reviver seed. At least powder moves didn't work on me; if they did, we might have been ejected from the dungeon right then. Despite all that, we managed to reach the end of the dungeon, and we even found an oran berry and two heal seeds along the way.

"Okay, we're out of the dungeon now," Crest said as we stepped into a clearing.

"That means the perfect apple tree should be around here somewhere," I concluded. "What makes it different from all the other apple trees again?"

"The apples it grows should be much bigger than the others we've seen," Crest answered. "You'll know it when you see it."

We wandered around the clearing for a while before finding the tree we were looking for. It was pretty far from the dungeon's exit and slightly taller than the normal apple trees around us, but what really stood out were the perfect apples among its branches. The apples were huge, almost as big as our treasure bag, and they almost seemed to sparkle when the sun shined on them. If they tasted half as good as they looked, then it was easy to see why Wigglytuff loved these things.

"This is it, but how are we going to get those apples? The tree is too tall to reach them," Crest wondered. "Can your vines reach that far?"

"I doubt it, I've never had to extend them more than a body length from me," I answered. "What if we cut them down with Razor Leaf or Bubble? Could that work?"

I was about to try my idea when a malicious voice interrupted me. "Chaw haw haw! Why make things so difficult on yourselves?" The voice said, stepping out of the foliage and revealing itself to be Skuntank. "Watch this, trees are no match for explorers like us."

I saw Zubat and Koffing flying behind Skuntank and expected they would retrieve the apples, but to my surprise they didn't move. Instead, Skuntank used his Night Slash on the base of the tree, causing several apples to fall to the ground.

"Whoa ho ho! That certainly is generous boss," Koffing praised.

"Yeah, now the wimps can collect the apples they need for the guild!" Zubat added.

Skuntank then turned toward us expectantly. "Well, what are you waiting for? Pick them up."

Crest and I didn't move. Team Skull has caused nothing but trouble for us before, and we had no reason to trust them now. This was clearly a trick.

A trick that Crest didn't hesitate to call them out on. "What do you guys actually want? After everything you've done, we know better than to trust you, so just leave us alone and let us complete our mission."

That seemed to catch Skuntank off guard, at least for a moment. When he recovered, his team dropped the helpful act. "Saw right through it, huh? Oh well, it's not like you can do anything about it." Team Skull got into battle positions, and we took a defensive stance in response. Crest was clearly intimidated, and I wasn't faring much better, but we couldn't back down now. "Take this! Our noxious-gas combo!"

Zubat quickly flew up and away from the battlefield. Below him, Koffing and Skuntank unleashed a massive cloud of their combined poisons. The cloud flew forward and engulfed us before we could react, and before I even knew what happened the battle was over.

Sometime later, I woke up still in front of the perfect apple tree. "Uhg, what happened?" I said before getting hit by a wave of purple sparks. So much for our last pecha berry…

"Team Skull knocked us out. I recovered on my own a moment ago, but I had to use our reviver seed to wake you up," Crest answered, handing me the berry. "At least we weren't in the dungeon. If we were, our badges would have forced us out and we would have lost our items."

"And we can still grab some apples to take back with us," I added.

Crest just shook his head. "I doubt that. Look, all the perfect apples are gone."

Gone? Wait, did Team Skull actually take all of the apples? Looking around, I saw the tree was picked clean and the ground was just as empty. "So, we failed our mission then. I guess we shouldn't have picked a fight with Team Skull. We should have just used our escape orb when we had the chance."

"Yeah…" Crest agreed. "Let's just go home. The last thing we need is for Chatot to get angry because we returned to the guild late."


	13. Chapter 12: Explanations

Author's Note:

*That awkward moment when Chatot is supposed to say "Cover your ears" but none of your characters have ears.*  
Something that always bothered me about PMD is that the player's past never has any effect on who they are or what they do. Let's face it, we all know Brandon's backstory from the game, and it is not an ideal place to grow up. So I've been trying to make his personality fit his past a bit more than the original game did (though I'm starting to wish I gave him a different name. He's supposed to be one of my characters, not _actually_ me)

* * *

"What do you mean you didn't retrieve any perfect apples?" Chatot screeched when we reported our failure at Apple Woods.

"We tried our best, but-" I began to explain before Chatot cut me off.

"No excuses! I warned you this morning that you could not fail today's mission," he scolded. "If you can't appreciate the weight of your mistake, then I'll just have to show you. I have to report this to the Guildmaster, and you two are coming with me. This way, now."

Chatot began down the ladder to the guild's lower floor, and Brandon and I followed behind him. It seemed to me like Chatot was blowing this out of proportion, and I could see that Brandon was just as frustrated as I was. We were ambushed by the team Chatot recruited, and somehow that was our fault? That wasn't fair. Hopefully Wigglytuff wouldn't be too upset.

We reached Wigglytuff's door, and Chatot let himself in with us following quietly behind him. "Guildmaster? I brought Team Strength. They will be reporting to you directly today," he said when we reached the center of the room.

The change in procedures didn't faze Wigglytuff though. "Oh, goodie! It's great when my friends are proud of their work. What is it you wanted to tell me?"

His cheerful personality briefly put me at ease until I remembered just what our report was. "Um, right," I began nervously, "well, we went to Apple Woods to collect perfect apples today…"

"Oh, I love perfect apples!" Wigglytuff cut in. "Why, I don't know what I'd do without them. How many did you find?"

That increasing enthusiasm only made finishing my explanation harder. I looked to Brandon for help, but he was even more worried than me, and he rarely spoke around Chatot anyway. "We didn't actually… find any…" I concluded hesitantly.

To my relief and Brandon's discomfort, Wigglytuff maintained his usual optimism. "That's alright, nobody wins every time. Don't feel blue, don't feel blue!" he assured us. Turning to Chatot he asked, "What about the other perfect apples?"

"Oh right, those…" Chatot responded, now caught in the same situation as us. "Well, about the other apples, our entire stock kind of… um… disappeared last night and… you see… we only sent one team to collect more, which means, you know… the number of perfect apples in the guild would be… zero."

Wigglytuff stared blankly forward for a moment before simply responding, "Oh." The response seemed to relax Brandon a bit, but Chatot remained frantic.

"So that means," he explained, "you will have to… go without perfect apples tonight." As Chatot finished talking the stress of his explanation became too much for him. He burst out into nervous laughter while the rest of us stood around awkwardly, waiting to see how Wigglytuff would react.

There was a short moment of silence as Wigglytuff processed what Chatot said. "No perfect apples?" he questioned. When none of us responded, he closed his eyes and turned around.

"Oh no…" Chatot said quietly. "Both of you, brace yourselves. This is going to be very loud."

Before I had time to question it, Wigglytuff began to cry, unleashing a deafening Hyper Voice as he did so. The sudden noise surprised me, and I turned away, holding my head in my flippers. Beside me Chatot was doing the same with his wings while Brandon was using vines. Just when I thought my head would explode, I heard a voice from the entrance of the room.

"Excuse me, but we would like to deliver a perfect apple," I recognized the voice as Skuntank's and immediately felt anger welling up within me.

Wigglytuff quieted down as Team Skull entered the room. "A perfect apple?" he repeated in surprise before bouncing back to his usual cheerful self. "Why, thank you friends! You really got this just for me?"

"Of course!" Skuntank answered. "Consider it a token of our friendship. We had to repay you for your hospitality somehow."

"Thank you for that," Chatot said. "Your considerate actions have helped us more than you know." He then addressed us, "You two, show some gratitude. Were it not for Team Skull, we'd be facing the Guildmaster's wrath."

We stayed quiet. That apple was supposed to be ours. They stole it from us, yet we were supposed to thank them for their actions? Not happening.

Chatot was persistent though. "Well? Out with it. They helped you, so show some appreciation."

I still refused to speak, but Brandon gave in, perhaps just wanting to leave as soon as possible. In his anger, however, he made a simple mistake. "Thank you…" he said quietly in Knownun.

"Yeah, thanks," I said quickly in an attempt to cover it up.

It didn't work. Chatot noticed Brandon's slip up and decided to question it. "Any particular reason you answered in Knownun instead of Pokesh, Brandon?" The question caught Brandon off guard, and he was quiet as he searched for an appropriate answer. "Well?"

Apparently giving up, Brandon simply answered in Pokesh, "It's my first language."

"But you are fluent in Pokesh, aren't you?" Chatot pressed. Once again Brandon hesitated. "Evidently not, then."

"Now friends, this is no time for fighting! I have my perfect apple, so everything is great," Wigglytuff interrupted. "Now then, you are all dismissed. Thank you, friends!"

Skuntank led his team out of the room, smirking the whole time. He knew how much trouble he caused us, and he loved it. Worse yet, there was nothing we could do about it. He beat us today, but there was no way he could get away with that sort of thing forever.

Chatot then led me and Brandon out of the room to finish our meeting. "Now then, you saw how disastrous your failure today was. As punishment, you two will go without dinner tonight."

"What?" I interrupted, "that's not fair!"

"Hush now!" Chatot shot back. "You failed an important mission. Your punishment could be much more severe. That is all for you Crest. As for Brandon, I will have to discuss that with the Guildmaster. For now, you are both dismissed."

* * *

Well, that was certainly a mess. Team Strength has never failed a mission before, and that alone would cause them some grief. But then Chatot insisted they see me directly, and that left me in a tight spot. I did my best to let them know it's okay to fail occasionally while keeping my true composure a secret, but it seemed to do more harm than good.

Then there was the matter of Team Skull. I knew those three did not get along well with the guild members, but Brandon seemed especially distasteful of them. And where did they get a perfect apple? Did they somehow know the guild had run out? It was suspicious that our stock disappeared after they joined us, almost as if they had eaten the apples themselves, but without hard evidence to support my suspicions I couldn't kick them out. There had to be something I could do though…

I noticed that Team Strength was absent from dinner. If I had to guess, that was Chatot's punishment for their failed mission. He really didn't understand how to train new recruits; his punishments were far too harsh. Luckily I wasn't the only one who thought so, because I saw several guild members put some food aside instead of eating it. I think I'll just turn a blind eye to that.

Back in my chamber, Chatot and I were discussing the day's events. "Excluding Team Strength, all recruits' field missions were successful today," Chatot summarized. "But I think the topic deserves some attention. What do you suggest we do about their failure?"

"Chatot, you've already done enough. There's no need to be so strict with our newest recruits," I explained.

"And what about Brandon speaking Knownun? Surely you don't intend to overlook that," he continued.

"I do," I answered, "and I expect you to too. He is working hard just like everyone else. He'll learn on his own."

"I can't say I agree with it," Chatot responded, "but if you don't want to do anything about it, I'll follow. What about your expedition preparations?"

That was a good question. I had the exploration team finalized this morning, but after everything that happened today I may need to reconsider my choices. "I've almost decided who will go. What about you?"

"All our supplies are ready to go, as soon as I know who is and isn't going I can finish my preparations," Chatot answered.

"In that case, you're dismissed. See you in the morning Chatot," I said. With our meeting done Chatot left the room.

I looked over the list of expedition members again. Normally I wouldn't let Chatot's actions affect my decision, but after Team Strength wasn't at dinner everyone knew about their failure today. That meant I'd need some kind of explanation for choosing Crest for the expedition. He had to go, but he also couldn't be chosen over anyone else. What was I supposed to do?

As I pondered over my list there was a knock on my door. "Come in, friend!"

I looked toward the entrance and was surprised to see Brandon. His usually contemplative expression was missing, and in its place was a mixture of nervousness, indecision, regret, and even a bit of fear. Come to think of it, this was the first time I could clearly read him.

"Um, Guildmaster?" he said awkwardly in Pokesh.

"You can use Knownun if that's easier for you," I assured him.

He seemed to relax after that. "So, you've dropped the act?" he asked, this time in Knownun.

"I think we both know you've figured me out. Why else would you be here?" I reasoned. "Besides, I owe you an apology."

Brandon appeared confused by that. "For what?"

"Lots of things, actually," I explained. "Most importantly what happened today. I should have revealed myself earlier, Chatot was out of line. And there's the matter of your training. Out of everything you've done here, I think there's only been one day where something didn't go wrong."

"I did notice something was off, but rarely anything too bad," he reasoned. "But now I'm curious: which day went right?"

"Well, you know the outlaw mission was too difficult. The Waterfall Cave exploration was set up to test your team's independence and skills as explorers, but you found help, so that was a bust too. That just leaves your first mission. Oh, and your training day at the dojo," I noticed Brandon's expression fell when I mentioned the dojo. "Unless something happened I don't know about."

"That actually relates to what I wanted to talk about. I assume you know that Team Skull and I don't get along," he paused for a moment before asking, "have you ever wondered why that is?"

I thought for a moment. "I recall seeing Chimecho give you and Sunflora extra pecha berries after they showed up, but I take it there's more to it than that." Brandon was still hesitant. Whatever he wanted to say must be pretty serious. "Don't feel the need to hide things from me. If you have concerns, let me hear them."

That was enough to break his silence. "It's just that I know what I'm about to say is a pretty big accusation. I ran into Koffing and Zubat before joining the guild. They attacked me and stole something from Crest, a stone he wears as a necklace. We only got it back because they sold it to Kecleon. Then, on the day I went to the dojo, Skuntank attacked me in the guild. Chimecho had to give me a reviver seed and some pecha berries to heal."

That was a lot to take in. Sure, I had my suspicions about those three since they joined us at the guild, and I knew most of the guild members didn't like them, but Chatot insisted they would be a big help on the expedition. He was so sure that they were good pokemon. "What about today?" I asked. "Did they attack you in Apple Woods?"

Brandon nodded. "They knocked us out and took all of the perfect apples. There was nothing we could do against them."

"They set you up, that's for sure," I concluded. "I suspect they are the ones responsible for the apples disappearing in the first place. Unfortunately, we lack evidence to hold against them. Without proof of what they did, I can't kick them out."

"But you do believe me, right?" he asked.

"Of course, I never wanted to work with them in the first place. Letting them into the guild was Chatot's idea," I assured him. "I'll think of some way to get rid of them, so don't worry about that. Instead, let's talk. I assume you have as many questions for me as I have for you?"

By now Brandon had relaxed and was talking openly with me. "That depends on how many questions you have. I'm afraid I won't have answers for all of them."

I guess he's still hiding something then. "In that case I'll start by asking for your opinion. Remember the expedition that's coming up? I have the list of who is going on it right here. Now, I'll be strait with you: you aren't on it. You never were, but Crest is." I stopped for a moment to gauge his reaction. "So here is the question: after what happened today, how do you think the other guildmembers would respond to Crest going on the expedition? Specifically, how do you think those who were not picked will react?"

Brandon didn't appear too surprised that he wasn't picked, but I could tell he didn't expect me to choose Crest. Regardless, he thought for a moment before giving his answer. "I don't think they will think much of it. From what I can tell, you have a bit of a reputation for being… unpredictable," he reasoned, "and if you need to give them an explanation you could simply pin today's failure on me, since I'm not going anyway."

"You'd really be okay with that?" At first Brandon's answer seemed selfless, but on closer inspection I found it was a purely logical argument. If there was emotion behind his suggestion, he hid it well.

"It's not like it changes anything," he explained. "Nobody expected me to go on the expedition anyway. They would all think Crest just got lucky."

Another logical argument. It's almost like he has no emotion at all. If this is how Brandon thinks, then it's no surprise he figured me out so quickly. "Okay, new question. Out of everyone in the guild, only three of you have ever seen through my cheerful persona. Out of those three, you saw through it the fastest. What clued you in? Was it the missions designed to improve Crest's confidence?"

"Well… partially," Brandon began, once again hesitant. "It certainly helped, but the actual reason is something I wanted to ask you about. I don't know why, but sometimes I have visions of the past or future when I touch things. I don't know what exactly causes the visions and I can't control when I have them, but I saw you exploring Waterfall Cave."

A Chikorita having visions? That raised at least as many questions as it answered. "That explains it, you can't hide much from a psychic."

"Do you know anything about my visions?" he asked, finally sounding invested in the conversation.

"Nothing," I answered simply, "if anyone would know anything, it would be you, or someone who knows you." His expression fell at my response, and I instinctively asked, "Don't you have anyone like that?"

"I don't know," Brandon replied, "I lost my memory shortly before joining the guild. The few visions I've had are all I have to go on."

"You lost all of your memory?" I questioned as I began to think, "but you remembered your name. Are sure there's nothing else?"

He thought deeply before responding, almost as if he didn't trust whatever he remembered. Instead of answering my question, he asked one of his own. "Do you know what a human is?"

"A…" I began before realizing that the word did not exist in Pokesh. "A human?" I tried the word in Knownun. "I've never heard of it. Does it have something to do with your memory?"

"Yeah," Brandon answered as he struggled to explain, "a human is… well, kind of like a Machop, but bigger, and not a Fighting type. Actually, it has no type at all because… it's not a pokemon. My only memory is that, before I lost my memory, I was a human."

Brandon waited nervously for my response, but I didn't know what to say. Non-pokemon monsters supposedly used to exist, but they were all long extinct, and all monsters had types. Brandon's description of a human was unlike anything I have ever known. Still, he didn't seem like he was lying, and it did explain his strange name and mannerisms.

"I don't fully understand your explanation," I admitted, "but I believe you." He relaxed a bit upon hearing that. "Now, I think I've asked enough about you. You have some questions for me, right?"

"I do, actually," Brandon responded, "though I doubt your answers will compare to mine. Why do you always pretend to be silly and incompetent?"

I smiled to myself. That was always the first question. "There are lots of small reasons. It puts friendly pokemon at ease and makes enemies drop their guard. I use that to protect my friends. If anyone tries to attack the guild, they always attack me directly because I'm not perceived as a dangerous target. Never underestimate the value of being underestimated."

"But then why do you act like that around allies?" he continued.

"Consistency. If the guildmembers knew who I really was, then everyone would find out. That's why I rarely reveal myself, even to close friends," I explained. That should lead into his next question…

"Alright then, one last question: Why did you reveal yourself to me?" he asked.

I was pretty sure he already knew why, but I answered anyway. "Because I can't hide it from you. Which is why I need you to promise you won't tell anyone about this."

"I won't," he agreed.

"Good," I concluded. "You know, it's nice to have someone other than Chatot to talk to. Feel free to come by anytime you need help with something. In the meantime, I'll see if I can learn anything about humans or your visions. Now, it's getting pretty late, why don't you get to bed."

As he turned to leave, Brandon appeared much calmer than before. In fact, I think that was the happiest I'd ever seen him. "Thanks, Wigglytuff," he said as he left.

"No problem," I answered back. Now, with that series of revelations out of the way, I had preparations to finalize.

* * *

I left the Guildmaster's chamber feeling much more relaxed than when I entered. It was great that I finally confirmed my suspicions, even if I couldn't tell anyone about it, and I got to explain what actually happened today too. We ended up discussing a bit more than I expected, but somehow I knew that was a good thing.

On my way to my room I ran into some of the other guild members. Chimecho, Sunflora, and Bidoof were waiting for me just inside the main hall to the crew rooms. "Oh, there you are Brandon," Chimecho greeted, "We know it's late, but we wanted to give you and Crest something. Do you know where he is?"

"Probably in our room," I answered, slightly confused.

"Why, I reckon that's perfect," Bidoof said.

"Oh my gosh, it is," Sunflora agreed, "let's hurry there now!"

"Wait, what's going on?" I asked, still not sure why everyone was still awake this late.

"You'll see in a moment," Chimecho assured me, "but we really should hurry. We don't want Chatot to see us when he thinks we're asleep."

Deciding not to question it further, I led the group to my room at the end of the hall. Just as I expected, Crest was already there.

"Oh, your finally back," he said when I entered. "You were gone longer than I thought you would be. What is everyone else doing here?"

Sunflora answered for the group, "Well, we noticed that you weren't at dinner, and everyone kinda felt bad about it, so… we thought we'd get you something."

Chimecho hovered forward, levitating two small plates of food with her. "I couldn't take anything from the kitchen after the perfect apples disappeared, but the whole guild snuck away parts of their dinners. We couldn't just leave you hungry."

"Wait, really?" Crest asked in surprise, "Are you sure it's okay? I mean, this is your food, isn't it?"

Looking at the plate in front of me, I could easily see why Crest was so surprised. There was almost as much food as a normal dinner, complete with an apple, some berries, and even a grass gummi. That must have been Sunflora's…

"Of course it's okay," Sunflora assured us. "If Team Skull gets to eat, then so do you!"

"Just don't tell Chatot," Chimecho advised.

"Obviously," I said. "He isn't even happy when you do everything perfectly."

That got a laugh out of everyone. When they quieted down, Crest spoke up, "Seriously, though, thank you. You have no idea how hungry I was!"

"It's Bidoof you should be thanking," Chimecho replied.

"Oh my gosh, that's right! Sharing our food was Bidoof's idea!" Sunflora added.

I didn't expect that. Actually, I don't what I expected from Bidoof; compared to Chimecho and Sunflora I barely knew him. He seemed to be good friends with Crest though. "In that case, thanks Bidoof," I said.

"Golly, don't think nothin' of it, I know what it's like to miss dinner," Bidoof replied. "Besides, I'm just glad to have you guys around. Before you showed up, I was the most recent rookie."

"In any case, we should go to bed, it's already very late," Chimecho suggested. "I can pick up the dishes after tomorrow's morning briefing, so don't worry about that. Goodnight!"

"Goodnight," everyone else replied as they returned to their rooms.

That just left me, Crest, and the small plates of food, which we were eager to eat. As I bit into the grass gummi, I looked over the contents of my plate to find something I hadn't noticed before: half of a perfect apple.


	14. Chapter 13: Exploration Time

Author's Note:  
It's finally expedition time, which means lots of mystery dungeons. This was originally going to be two separate chapters, but they were both kind of short and I didn't want to extend the next one to include three mystery dungeons. Anyway, enjoy the Bidoof chapter!

* * *

As the sun shone through the window onto my bed, I contemplated whether or not I should wake Crest up. I really wasn't feeling motivated to do my guild work today; as long as Team Skull was around there was little chance of us getting anything done. Still, the last thing I needed was to give Chatot another reason to be upset with me. Deciding that the best way to please him was to be early for the morning briefing, I roused Crest so we could take our spots in the main room.

When we reached the meeting area, I was surprised to see that Chatot wasn't there yet. Normally he was one of the first pokemon here, but today the only one waiting in the room when we got there was Sunflora. In fact, Chatot was one of the last pokemon to reach the meeting area. Regardless, the morning briefing started on time, just like it usually did.

"Okay, everyone," Chatot began, "before we get to our usual cheers, the Guildmaster has an announcement to make, so you should all listen carefully."

Wigglytuff then stepped forward. "That's right friends, I have very exciting news! We will be going on the big expedition today!"

The guild erupted with excitement from the announcement. Well, everyone but me anyway; I knew I wasn't going. It did seem strange that the expedition team hadn't been announced before now though. Wigglytuff seemed to be scanning the crowd to gauge everyone's reactions, and when he reached me he gave me a sly smile. After a moment of confusion, I realized that the expedition was not originally planned for today; Wigglytuff just moved it forward to get rid of Team Skull.

As the guild began to quiet down, Chatot resumed the meeting. "Alright, that's enough out of all of you. Now, everyone listen up. The expedition will be to Foggy Forest, which is quite far from the guild. As such, those of us going on the expedition will set up base camp just outside the forest. In addition, we will be traveling to the campsite in small groups that the Guildmaster has already assigned."

"That's right, everyone gets to work together in their own teams this time!" Wigglytuff interrupted. "And I have those teams on this piece of paper. Everyone listen closely for your names." As he finished speaking he handed the list to Chatot.

"Alright, the first group is Sunflora, Loudred, Diglett, and Croagunk," Chatot began as he read the list. "The next group is Dugtrio, Chimecho, and Corphish. Group three is…" Chatot stopped himself as he realized something. "Wait a moment, this list contains every member of the guild!"

Every member of the guild? But that means…

"We got picked?" Crest questioned.

"And I get to go too?" Bidoof added.

Chatot frantically turned to Wigglytuff. "Guildmaster, is this really the list for the expedition?"

"Of course it is," he answered. "I should know, I wrote it myself."

"But we would be leaving the guild unattended," Chatot reasoned. "Are you sure that is wise?"

Wigglytuff's cheery demeanor didn't change. "It will be okay, we'll just lock everything up tight, and then we can all go exploring with our friends!"

Skuntank seemed annoyed by the decision, probably because it meant Crest and I were both going on the expedition. Little did he know Crest was always going to be picked, so nothing he could say could change anything. Of course, that wouldn't stop him from trying. "Guildmaster, I also have some concerns. Have you considered that we may have too many members for the exploration?"

Wigglytuff put on a thoughtful expression, though I could tell it was fake. "Hmm… when I friend says something like that, it makes me wonder why…" he said, subtly warning Skuntank to back off.

"It's just, is it really necessary for so many pokemon to go? What is the point?" he defended.

Bouncing back to his cheerful personality Wigglytuff answered, "Of course there's a point: if everyone goes it will be more fun!"

Skuntank didn't have a response for that. Instead he just stepped back, dumbfounded.

Chatot also appeared surprised, but he recovered enough to finish the meeting. "In that case, the final group is Bidoof, Crest, and Brandon. Now, if you'll excuse me, the Guildmaster and I have to finish preparing for the expedition. The rest of you should meet with your teams and make any necessary preparations of your own before regrouping here. You are all dismissed."

With the meeting over, everyone broke into their respective groups. Bidoof came over to me and Crest, not bothering to hide his excitement. "Golly, I can't believe we got picked! I've never gotten to go on an expedition before."

"Me either," Crest replied, "and after what happened yesterday, I don't think anyone would have been surprised if Brandon and I stayed behind."

"Well, I'm glad we get to go, yup-yup," Bidoof continued. "So, uh, what do we do now?"

"I think we should go to the Kecleon Market for supplies," I suggested.

Crest agreed with me, "Good idea. We're running pretty low on items."

Our group went to town only to realize items were not the only things we were low on; we only had 145 Poke to spend. I guess our lack of standard missions messed up more than our training. Despite our lack of funds, Kecleon let us buy a luminous orb.

"So much for restocking our bag," Crest said as we left the market.

"At least we got one item, even if we really shouldn't have," I responded.

"That's Kecleon for you, yup-yup," Bidoof explained, "They just want to support the expedition. If we find something, that's good news for the entire town."

"Well, since we're out of Poke, there isn't really anything left for us to do," Crest continued. "Unless there's something you need from town."

To my surprise, Bidoof actually did have something he wanted to do. "Golly, I bet we will get a lot stronger during the expedition. I'd like to stop by Electivire's shop to see what kinds of moves I might learn."

"I thought he just ran a move relearning service," I questioned.

Crest explained for me, "He mostly does, but Electivire knows a lot about moves. It makes sense that he could answer questions about learnsets."

Bidoof led the way to Electivire, who greeted us enthusiastically. "Howdy, explorers! Are you looking to learn some moves?"

"Not exactly," Bidoof explained, "but our guild is going on an expedition and I wanted to know what moves I should try to learn while we're gone."

"Alrighty then, let me see your badge," Electivire instructed. Upon receiving the badge from Bidoof, he placed it behind his table and appeared to be reading something. "Let's see, you're level nine, so the moves you should learn soon are… Rollout and Headbutt." He looked up and asked, "What about you two? Should I check your movesets as well?"

"We would, but we don't have any Poke right now," Crest explained.

"But you're members of Wigglytuff's guild, right? The guild funds the dojo and by extension my services, so there's no need to pay for them. In fact, I'd like you to test something for me," Electivire answered.

"Test something?" Bidoof repeated.

"That's right. You see, to predict learnsets I connect your team badge to a database filled with the average levels most pokemon learn new moves," he explained. "But it would be more useful to most pokemon if they could access that information on their own. I want to install predictive moveset analysis onto team badges so pokemon can see what moves they should be able to use, but I need someone to field test it. Ya interested?"

Crest and Bidoof seemed to get lost in the explanation, but it sounded like a good deal to me. "I'd like to try it. I would probably struggle to learn new moves if I didn't know what they were."

Either Crest caught up to the earlier explanation or decided to trust my decision, because he handed over his badge when I gave Electivire mine. "Okay, just give me a moment…" He worked behind his table for a while before handing us our badges. "Alright, that should do it. Whenever you want to check which moves you might learn, just navigate to your current moveset and select 'Predictive Moveset Analysis.' That should show you which moves are common at different levels."

Following Electivire's instructions, I found a new option when viewing my current moves. Upon selecting it, something resembling a list appeared on the screen. Unfortunately, I couldn't read Footprint Runes well enough to make much sense of it. Still, the first four items matched my current moveset, and the numbers next to them matched the levels I learned each move. As far as I could tell it was working.

Perhaps realizing I couldn't read the display, Crest pointed out what I needed to know. "Your next move is Synthesis at level twelve. That's pretty useful."

"What about you?" I asked.

"Apparently I can learn Water Sport. Not like it matters though," he answered.

"That could be useful, I am a Grass type after all," I argued.

"Name one dungeon with Fire types," Crest countered. I had no answer. "Exactly. Fire attacks are extremely rare in mystery dungeons. Water Sport is not worth learning, I'll just wait for Peck."

"If you say so," I conceded. "I think we're done here, so let's head back to the guild before Chatot decides we're late."

* * *

"Are you finally ready to go?" I asked when Brandon emerged from the guild. We met with the rest of the guild on the lower floor as Chatot instructed, but there was nothing to do there. He just showed everyone where base camp would be on the map, and Wigglytuff said we were free to find our own routes to Foggy Forest. Bidoof and I followed the other guild members outside before we realized Brandon wasn't with us.

"Yeah, I'm ready," Brandon answered, "and I asked Wigglytuff about our route. He suggested we take a detour through a few easy dungeons instead of trying to go straight to base camp."

Bidoof seemed to like that idea. "Sounds good to me, yup-yup. It is our first expedition after all."

"Lead the way then," I replied. "Which dungeons are we going through?"

"The first one is called Craggy Coast. Once we get through there we will be at the entrance to Mt. Horn, which should lead to the campsite," Brandon explained.

From the crossroads we followed our map until we reached the entrance to Craggy Coast. It took quite a while to reach the dungeon, partially because it was so far from Treasure Town but also because we had Bidoof with us. Brandon and I were not used to having a third team member, and Bidoof wasn't much of an explorer. We decided to take a moment to prepare ourselves before continuing.

"So, why are we going through this dungeon again?" Bidoof asked. "I mean, was this really the best way to go?"

"It's the easiest path through the mountains," Brandon answered. "At least, that's what Wigglytuff said."

"At this point we might as well go _around_ the mountains," I responded. "We've already made this much of a detour anyway, why not keep going? I think I see a path right there."

Brandon looked toward the path I mentioned and considered my idea. "I guess we could keep going, but it would probably take longer than going through the dungeon. We already have the slowest route to the base camp, so we really shouldn't take any more detours. Besides, we don't know where that path leads. At least by going through Craggy Coast we know where we will end up."

"Golly, I don't want to be getting lost," Bidoof cut in. "If you know where we are going, I'll just follow you. This is supposed to be an easy mystery dungeon, isn't it?"

"It's supposed to be," Brandon responded. "In fact, it looks like there would be a lot of Water types here."

By now I was checking the stats for the dungeon on my badge. "In that case you should take the lead. Your Razor Leaf will be useful here, and if you take a lot of damage you can practice using Synthesis. That way you'll know the move when we reach Mt. Horn." The information on my badge suggested this dungeon would not be as easy as Brandon made it sound, but his type advantage would still have some use.

We entered Craggy Coast and cleared the first few floors without incident. Bidoof had some trouble against the hostiles' ranged attacks and Brandon had to be wary of the occasional Wingull, but keeping our distance from enemies seemed to work well. That is, until one Wingull got a little too close to our group. If there was one thing we learned from that experience, it was to stay away when Brandon gets ambushed. Otherwise your Tackle could get you caught up in a poison cloud.

While Bidoof was recovering with a heal seed, Brandon tried to figure out Synthesis. He always seemed to struggle with learning new moves. With that giant leaf on his head you would think using Synthesis would be easy, but he misfired several Razor Leafs before getting it right. At least he had it down by the end of the dungeon, because Bidoof used one of our few oran berries. Luckily we found another one inside the dungeon, along with a pecha berry and even a reviver seed.

Speaking of the end of the dungeon, it was almost sunset when we reached it. "I guess your route was a bit longer than you thought it was," I told Brandon.

"In my defense, it was Wigglytuff's idea, and we've never had to go through multiple dungeons in one day before," he replied. "What do you think we should do?"

I checked my badge for information on Mt. Horn. "This next dungeon is almost as bad for us as Apple Woods was. Unless we're trying the side path this time, we should probably rest before continuing…"

"So are we setting up camp here for tonight?" Bidoof asked.

"I'd rather not," Brandon answered. "Everyone is expecting us at the base camp, and we don't have food."

"Golly, that's not true! I brought some apples," Bidoof corrected.

"And we're all too tired to go any further today anyway," I continued. That was enough to convince Brandon that we were not reaching the campsite tonight. "I'm going to gather materials to make beds, you guys can divide the apples."

Upon hearing that Bidoof didn't hesitate to dig into his treasure bag, and Brandon reluctantly joined him. Meanwhile I began to look around for leaves to make beds out of. When I finished with the beds I joined my teammates to eat some apples. To my surprise there was a small campfire waiting for me.

"How did you make that?" I asked.

"Some sticks and a blast seed," Brandon explained. "I didn't expect it to work as well as it did, but I'm not complaining."

With the fire to keep us warm, we spent a surprisingly peaceful night outside the entrance to Mt. Horn. Of course, Brandon made sure we got up early the next morning; we didn't want to keep the guild waiting for us after all. I used my Bubble to put out what was left of the fire before leading our group into the next dungeon.

Just as I expected, Brandon had some trouble with this one. Many of the hostiles were immune to Poison Powder and Razor Leaf wasn't much better, so he mostly avoided battling. What I wasn't expecting was how well Bidoof was doing. His Defense Curl gave him an advantage I hadn't considered before, and we quickly realized we could pair it with Growl to make enemy attacks nearly useless. Between that and Brandon's Synthesis, we only needed one oran berry to get through the dungeon.

It didn't take long to reach the guild's campsite. Chatot was waiting for us, but I didn't see anyone else there. "So, you three are finally here," he said, clearly annoyed. "Normally I'd have more to say about your absence last night, but it has already been excused by the Guildmaster. Now that you've reached base camp, you are free to split apart from your travel group. Make any preparations you need to make and start exploring the area. Everyone else has already started their own explorations, so you better hurry if you want to make any discoveries. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to find the Guildmaster to report your arrival."

Finally, we got to do some real exploring! I couldn't wait to see what we would find. "I'm all ready to explore, what about you guys?" I said excitedly.

"Golly, I sure do want to, but I'm just too tired from that last dungeon," Bidoof answered. "I think I'll wait here for a while to rest, but I'll start exploring soon, yup-yup."

"I'm ready to go," Brandon replied. "And I think we should start right away. Wigglytuff can't stave off Chatot's wrath for us forever."

"Alright then. Bidoof, we'll let you know if we find anything interesting. We'll see you then!"


	15. Chapter 14: Foggy Thoughts

Author's Note:

Welcome back to the part of the story where I attempt to make exploring four consecutive mystery dungeons interesting. This chapter makes a few minor changes to the original story, but it means we get to see more from Wigglytuff (:

* * *

"Another forest, huh?" I said as we stood at the entrance to the next dungeon.

"Looks like it, which means more Grass- and Bug- types," Brandon responded. "What level do you learn Peck, again?"

I checked my badge. "Apparently I should already be able to learn it," I answered. With a bit of effort, I focused energy into my beak, causing it to glow slightly. "Correction: I can already use it."

"That's good, because we know how useless I am in those matchups," he continued. "Are there any moves I should try to learn?"

"You should learn to read," I said as he handed me his badge. "Reflect at level seventeen, then Magical Leaf at twenty. You've got a while before you get any new moves."

"Hey, it's not my fault I can't read. You said you would teach me," he defended, taking his badge back. "In any case, you should take the lead. With all this fog around I doubt my Synthesis will be of much use."

It turns out we didn't have to worry so much after all. Upon entering the dungeon, we were met with several Normal types, and while the Hoothoot were a bit problematic, relatively few pokemon were immune to Brandon's Poison Powder. We managed to find two more oran berries than we used, as well as a foe-fear orb. Still, the fog made progress slow.

"Any idea how long this dungeon is?" Brandon asked me after a while.

"No clue," I answered, "there's nothing in my badge's database about this place. Well, the dungeon anyway. There are plenty of rumors about a treasure hidden in the fog."

"I can only assume that treasure is why we're here. Did the rumors say what it is or is it impossible to know?" he questioned further.

I checked my badge again before responding, "It doesn't look like anyone knows what we're looking for, but there is one legend that might interest you. Apparently, some explorers have managed to navigate the fog and even reach the treasure, but there's a legendary pokemon guarding it that can erase memories. If that's true, then anyone who found the treasure wouldn't remember it."

That seemed to get Brandon thinking. "There's a pokemon that can erase memories here, huh? I can't help but wonder about my own lost memory."

"Do you think the two are related?" I asked.

"Perhaps. To be honest, there is something oddly familiar about this place. I might be overthinking it though; most forests are at least somewhat similar," he concluded. Then, after a moment of thought, he asked, "Do you think we might find that pokemon?"

"We have to find our way through this dungeon first," I reminded him.

Luckily for us, the rest of the dungeon was mostly uneventful. The few pokemon strong enough to pose a threat to us also scared off the other hostiles, and they were no match for us two against one, especially after I learned Bubble Beam. It didn't take long for us to reach the end of the dungeon, where we were met with countless small waterfalls pouring down on us from the top of some strange cliff. At least, I think they came from the top; it was still too foggy to see very far.

From what we could see, we determined that all the nearby mystery dungeons let out here, indicated by the paths on either side of us. Where the paths conjoined there was a large stone statue, and upon closer investigation, we discovered we were not the first to reach this place.

"Hey hey hey! You finally caught up," Corphish greeted as we approached the statue. "I was starting to think no one else would find this place."

"Wait, are you alone here?" I asked in response.

"The rest of my group split up to explore the other paths. I think the Guildmaster is with them," Corphish answered, gesturing to our left. "I'm still convinced we're missing something here though, so I stayed behind."

Brandon examined the statue closely. "It does look important. That's Groudon, right?"

"Yeah, that's Groudon," I confirmed. "Supposedly it has the power to create intense sunlight. If the statue shares that power, it might lift the fog."

Corphish led us to the side of the statue. "There's an inscription here, but it's some sort of riddle. I couldn't figure it out."

We studied the inscription, but I quickly realized Brandon was lost. Since he still couldn't read, I read the inscription out loud.

"Trapped in fog, a treasure lies.  
The key to see is in my eyes.  
Light them and the fog will rise,  
Then cast your gaze upon the skies.

My hidden world, one of art.  
Lost in fog, but where to start?  
Should you wish the clouds to part,  
Ignite the fire in Groudon's heart."

Brandon continued to study the inscription while Corphish and I explored the statue itself. It was incredibly realistic, matching the pictures I've seen of Groudon perfectly. The eyes were hollow, and there was a small crevice in the center, but seemingly nothing to interact with. As suspicious as the statue was, I was starting to think we hit a dead end investigating it.

Soon Brandon joined us in front of the statue. "Where to start… ignite the fire… in Groudon's heart…" he repeated to himself quietly. Upon seeing the crevice in the statue, he had an idea. "That would be Groudon's heart, right?"

I looked closely at the statue. "It could be, I guess. I suppose you have an idea of how to 'ignite the fire' now?"

"It could be as simple as using a Fire type move in that hole," he suggested.

"Hey, hey! The guild doesn't have any Fire types! How are we going to use a Fire move without one?" Corphish wondered.

"We have a blast seed," I suggested. Grabbing the seed from my bag, I placed in the heart. "Brandon, think you could hit that with Razor Leaf?"

"Easily. Let's hope this works," he replied as he fired his attack.

The Razor Leaf hit the seed, causing a small explosion. A moment later, the statue began to shake violently. I thought it was about to fall apart until I saw Groudon's eyes begin to glow a warm, yellow color. Suddenly, a blinding light burst from the statue. When I reopened my eyes, the fog was gone.

"Looks like it worked, hey hey!" Corphish celebrated.

"Cast your gaze upon the skies," Brandon quoted, already looking above us. Following his example, I looked up to find that the cliff in front of us curved outward to form a chalice. At the top: the source of the waterfalls and a faint blue glow.

"That must be where the treasure is!" I exclaimed.

"I can't believe we found it!" Corphish continued, "I'll gather the rest of the guild while you two go on ahead. I need to find my team anyway." Corphish then scurried away, and we were about to explore like he had suggested when we heard a familiar, unnerving laugh behind us.

"Chaw haw haw!"

* * *

I think I lost count of how many times I passed that same waterfall. Seven? Eight? Thirty-six? Eh, probably not. On the bright side, I finally got away from Chatot. I know he means well, but he can be such a bore sometimes. After all, I'm the Guildmaster. That means I make the rules, so just let me go off-protocol once in a while. Our explorers can handle themselves; I just want to make my own discoveries sometimes. Then again, if I'd gotten myself this lost, I probably wouldn't find anything anytime soon.

I was shaken from my thoughts when I heard a rumbling sound in the distance. Deciding to investigate, I followed the sound only to be blinded by a flash of light. Where did that light come from? It was far brighter than anything I'd ever seen, even putting luminous orbs to shame. When the light faded, the fog around me had been lifted. That meant someone made a discovery without me! I just had to catch up to them, lest I be left out of the fun.

I broke into a run to find the source of the light, only slowing down when I noticed someone approaching me. "Oh, Corphish, hello friend! Did you lift the fog?"

"Well… sort of. I was there, at least, but Crest and Brandon are the ones who did it. They are just along this path, hey hey. I'm looking for the rest of my team before I continue exploring, but Team Strength should be moving ahead soon," he explained.

"Okay, good luck then. Catch up soon!" I replied before continuing down the path at a slightly slower pace. Sounds like I made the right call by letting Brandon join the expedition. I could only imagine how excited Crest was to make his own discovery, and I doubt that would have happened if he were on his own.

It didn't take long to catch up to my newest recruits; by the look of things they hadn't gotten very far before Team Skull interrupted them. Neither team had noticed me yet, so I decided to stay back and see what would happen. This was my chance to confirm my suspicions about them. If they acted out of line now, I would know that everything Brandon told me was true, and I could kick them out of the expedition.

From my less-than-hidden hiding spot, I could see Skuntank taunting Crest and Brandon, and it wasn't long before both sides took battle stances. Seems my experiment went a bit too far. If I didn't interfere now, someone would end up getting hurt.

"Wait!" I shouted, causing the explorers to look around in confusion. Thinking quickly, I pulled a perfect apple out of my bag and rolled it between the two teams. "Wait for me! Perfect apple, perfect apple!" I exclaimed as I ran after it. Upon reaching it I said, "There you are, perfect apple. Yay!" and proceeded to dance the apple on my head like I always would at dinner.

This, of course, drew looks of surprise and confusion from everyone involved. Well, everyone but Brandon, who knew it was an act. Skuntank was the first to speak up. "Uh, Guildmaster? What are you doing here? We were kind of in the middle of something."

"Huh?" I feigned my own confusion as I turned to face Skuntank. "Oh, hi friends! I was walking along this path exploring when my perfect apple went rolling and rolling away from me." Quickly spinning around to address my recruits, I urged them to leave the Poison types to me. "Now friends, the fog has cleared, right? That means you have a job to do. Go on, explore in the name of Wigglytuff's Guild!"

"Um… right. We'll get going now," Crest replied, clearly eager to leave. As he and Brandon left there was an objection from Skuntank.

"Guildmaster? I think perhaps my team should be going as well," he said, trying to follow Team Strength.

Of course, I wasn't going to allow it. "Huh? Oh, no no! There's no need! We will wait here for their report." I turned around and pretended to be distracted by my apple, but I could hear the trio of Team Skull scheming behind me. That was fine; if those three wanted to attack me, it would be their own downfall. My trap was set, all that was left was for them to take the bait.


	16. Chapter 15: Lost to Time

Author's Note:

It's finally the end of the expedition, which means it's time to explain the time gears. I tried to make the initial time gear thefts feel more significant than in the original story by adding a Gates to Infinity reference based on Wigglytuff's special episode. Anyway, on to Steam Cave!

* * *

'_Level seventeen… Reflect. That is what it says, right? Crest did say that was my next move,' _I thought as I attempted to read my badge. _'So then that must be… Magical Leaf at level twenty… and after that… nothing very useful until Light Screen.'_

"Hey, Brandon! Are you ready to go or would you rather wait for Team Skull to catch up?" Crest snapped me out of my thoughts.

"I don't think we'll have to worry about Team Skull anymore," I answered, "and I think it would be best if I master Reflect before we enter the dungeon. I almost have it figured out." I waved my leaf in a circle in front of me and was surrounded by a faint, blue barrier. A similar shield was also protecting Crest.

He seemed surprised by that. "Strange how you learned that move so quickly. It usually takes you a while."

"For some reason Reflect feels more intuitive to me than my other moves. It's like I already knew what to do, unlike the other attacks I've learned," I tried to explain. At least I had some way of contributing to battles; Crest's Bubble Beam and Peck had left me feeling a bit outclassed until now.

"In any case, we should get going. Our badges don't have any data on this dungeon, so we don't know how long it is or what kinds of hostiles we'll encounter," Crest said. "You should take the lead, since you can heal yourself."

That sounded like a good idea, at least until we actually entered the mystery dungeon. It didn't take long to realize most of the hostiles here had a type advantage against me. I was really starting to wish I wasn't a Grass type. Why couldn't I have become a Chimchar or something? It would be much more similar to a human than a Chikorita is, and a Fire type wouldn't have nearly as much trouble as I've had in most of these dungeons.

Speaking of Fire types, this was the first time I fought one. Luckily, Crest was able to deal with the Slugma and Numel in this dungeon before they could reach me, though I couldn't help but think things would be much easier if he just took the time to learn Water Sport. I had to keep my distance from enemies, but at least Reflect let me contribute something to battles. Eventually we reached an empty room.

"Looks like this is a rest floor," Crest said. "Good timing, too. I needed a break from battling."

"At least you have an advantage here," I pointed out.

"Yeah, who knows how much harder it would have been if I couldn't keep Fire types away," he agreed. "You were collecting items while I was battling, right?"

Opening the treasure bag, I responded, "Yep, I found two blast seeds and a stun seed. Oh, and this orb I didn't recognize."

"That's a blowback orb. It launches enemies away from you," Crest explained. "You might want to hold on to that."

I nodded in agreement. "We're actually pretty well stocked on items now, assuming the rest of the dungeon doesn't drain our supplies." As I finished talking we heard a roar coming from the path ahead of us.

Crest was visibly frightened by the noise. "What was that?"

"A hostile maybe?" I answered in an attempt to keep him (and to a lesser extent, myself) calm.

"I don't think so. It was too loud to have come from inside the dungeon," Crest reasoned. "I think it came from whatever is past the dungeon."

I thought for a moment. "There is supposed to be a treasure hidden around here somewhere, right? Maybe something is guarding it." Crest was still nervous, so I added, "We do have an escape orb if we need it. I just think we should try to reach the end of this dungeon before trying to escape."

"I guess you're right," Crest agreed, "if it seems too dangerous, we can escape. I just hope we don't have to."

"We'll be fine," I assured him. "I think we've spent enough time here. Let's move on, I'll lead for now."

Just like the first half of the dungeon, the second half was filled with Fire types. Luckily, it didn't take long for Crest to get his confidence back. It seems battling hostiles was enough to get his mind off of whatever made that noise. By now we knew what to expect from enemies, so we progressed through the dungeon fairly smoothly, only stopping to cure a burn using our heal seed.

It wasn't long before we reached another empty floor. Some distance ahead of us was a light blue glow, but before we could explore further, we were interrupted by a deafening roar.

"What was that?" I asked, frantically searching for the source of the noise.

Crest was just as startled, but he managed to find something. "Look over there! I-It's… it's Groudon!"

I initially began to panic, until I looked where Crest was pointing. "Wait, what? Where? I don't see it!" A pokemon that large should be impossible to miss, yet Groudon was nowhere to be seen.

"It's right there! In the center of the room!" Crest exclaimed.

I, however, still didn't see anything. "There's nothing there. What are you talking about?"

While I stood around in confusion, Crest jumped away from me, as if to dodge something. "Wait, you didn't… it's attack just passed right through you! It must be an illusion!" Suddenly he was knocked off his feet, apparently having been struck by something.

"Crest, are you okay?" I asked.

"Uhg, yeah I'm okay," Crest answered. "That thing may be an illusion, but its attacks still hurt. Give me a Reflect barrier so I can fight it, then try to find the illusionist. Whoever created this thing can't be too far away."

Following Crest's instructions, I used Reflect and began to search the arena. Unfortunately, I wasn't having any luck. Whoever created the illusion was well hidden, and Crest was having a hard time fighting "Groudon" on his own. I even had to throw him an oran berry to heal.

That's when I realized I had items that could locate our true enemy. I threw the luminous orb on the ground, causing it to explode into blinding light. As the light began to fade, I saw a shadow of a pokemon behind a large rock.

'_That shadow was Uxie's, wasn't it?'_ I thought. _'I can't beat a legendary pokemon in a battle. What am I supposed to do?'_ I looked back to Crest struggling to hold his own against the illusion and realized something: I didn't have to knock out Uxie. I just had to distract him enough to destroy his illusion.

I began to focus my energy into my seeds. When I had enough, I jumped behind the rock and ambushed Uxie with a thick Poison Powder cloud.

"Ah!" he exclaimed in surprise. "So, you found me..."

Uxie flew to the center of the battlefield and took an aggressive stance, though the poison was clearly causing him trouble. Meanwhile Crest and I regrouped. It seemed my ambush successfully disrupted the illusion; Crest was entirely focused on Uxie.

"Why are you attacking us?" Crest asked the legendary pokemon.

"Is it not obvious? You two are thieves! You are here to steal the lake's treasure, are you not?" Uxie accused.

"We're just explorers!" I defended. "We never intended to steal anything!"

"Lies!" Uxie shouted. "Did you really think I would not know? One time gear has already been stolen; I will not let you take this one!"

Suddenly Crest sounded extremely worried. "Wait, someone stole a time gear? Why would anyone do something like that?"

Upon hearing Crest's expression, Uxie's tone softened. "You mean that was not you?"

"Of course it wasn't us! Everyone knows how important they are, we would never try to take one," Crest continued.

Everyone knew about them, huh? That made my next question somewhat embarrassing. "Um, guys? What's a time gear?" I asked, more confused than ever.

"Do you not know?" Uxie asked. That seemed to convince him of our innocence. "The time gears regulate the flow of time across the world. Each one maintains time in its local area, as well as one of the five major continents. When a gear is removed from its rightful place, time stops in the areas it controlled. Time has already stopped on the Mist Continent due to the theft of a time gear." Uxie stopped himself as he took damage from the poison.

"Here, eat this," Crest said, offering Uxie our only pecha berry while taking an oran berry for himself. "No need for poison if we're not enemies."

"Thank you," Uxie said, eagerly accepting the berry. "Though I have not yet decided if you can be trusted. How did you not know about time gears?"

"I lost my memory a short while ago," I answered.

Uxie seemed puzzled by my response. "Are you sure you _lost_ your memory?"

"Well he certainly doesn't remember anything," Crest confirmed for me.

"That does not necessarily mean his memories are lost," Uxie explained. "Perhaps you noticed my illusion didn't work on him? That is because there is a lock on his mind. At first I thought you set it yourself specifically to oppose me, but perhaps it was set by someone else to block your memory. The lock is quite weak; if you are not maintaining it I should be able to destroy it for you."

"You mean you can restore my memory?" I asked hopefully.

"Only if said memory is blocked by the lock. If your memory is truly lost, then it cannot be recovered," he clarified. "Shall I proceed?"

I nodded in confirmation. Uxie began to focus, and I waited patiently for the mental lock to break. After a few minutes, Uxie relaxed.

"The lock is broken," he said plainly. "I can see into your mind clearly now. You truly had no memory of time gears… or much of anything it seems. And before you ask, I can assure you I know nothing of humans."

I admit I was extremely disappointed. "So it didn't work then."

"Well, it did work; the lock is gone. You just do not have any memories. Well, besides that… one," Uxie replied. "Now, both of you, follow me. There is something I need to show you."

Uxie led us past the battlefield and over to some sort of lake. The lake's water was glowing in the center, and I could see something blue submerged in it. Above the lake, a clear night sky was filled with small, glowing lights. It was such a peaceful scene, I almost forgot about how difficult it was to reach this place.

"This place is beautiful," Crest said in awe, "but what exactly are we looking at?"

"The lights in the sky are Volbeat and Illumise," Uxie explained, "and the light under the lake? That is a time gear. That is what I needed you to see. Normally, I would seal away visitors' memories of this place, but I know I can trust you. Since one gear has already been stolen, I want your guild to know about this one; I need you to help me protect it."

"You can count on Wigglytuff's Guild!" an overly cheerful voice called out from behind us.

We turned around to see Wigglytuff standing in what was our battlefield. "Not one for formalities, are you?" Uxie criticized.

"Guildmaster, how long have you been here?" Crest asked.

"Long enough," Wigglytuff answered in his more controlled voice. "I saw you battling the illusion and heard everything else."

"Then there is no need to repeat myself," Uxie responded. "Though I must ask you to never reveal this place. I know it is disappointing, but for the sake of the time gear you must report your exploration here today as a failure."

"Of course. I am aware of how important the time gears are," the Guildmaster explained. "You said time has already stopped on the Mist continent, right? I have a friend who lives there. Is there any chance Quagsire escaped?"

Uxie was hesitant to respond. "I am sorry, but that is beyond my knowledge. You will have to find out on your own. I can, however, suggest you return to your normally cheerful demeanor; the rest of your guild is approaching."

As Wigglytuff turned to address the guild members, I was reminded how few pokemon know about his serious side. "I've never seen the Guildmaster so grim. Things must be really bad if even he can't stay positive," Crest said.

"I don't know about that," I replied. "He isn't always so carefree. I'll explain more later, but for now, don't tell the rest of the guild what you saw about him. He wants it to stay a secret."

Still, it wasn't like the Guildmaster to reveal himself in front of recruits. If the time gears were as important as everyone said, then I suspected Wigglytuff's secret wouldn't last much longer.


	17. Chapter 16: Evolving Plans

Author's Note:  
Spiral's back! This chapter sets up a short subplot I'm adding for Brandon's backstory, and it hints a bit at Crest's past, too.

* * *

"Crest? I know you're tired, but I still think you should wake up before Loudred gets here," Brandon suggested. After the revelations at Fogbound Lake the guild wasted no time in returning home. Right now we were in our crew room at the guild, and it would not be long until the usual wake up call.

"Yeah, I know," I replied sleepily, "but it would be nice to sleep a normal amount into the day for once."

"What's normal?" he asked in response. "The sun is up; what more could you need?"

"Night lasts longer back home," I answered without thinking. "Let's just get to assembly. I don't think Team Skull followed us back to the guild, so there's no need to wait here."

We were among the first pokemon in the meeting room, but that was okay. I just didn't want Brandon to ask about Blizzard Island. He knew I didn't like to talk about it, but I didn't want to risk saying more than I should. If someone found out who I really was or that I ran away from home they might make me go back, and I wouldn't get to explore anymore.

As the guild members began to join us, Brandon noticed something. "Where do you think Chatot is? He's usually the first pokemon here."

"Knowing him he's probably keeping himself busy. Maybe he's looking for a reason to be upset," I jokingly suggested. Sunflora chuckled at that, apparently having listened in on us.

"The entire guild has been gone for a few days," she explained, "so he is probably a bit behind. As much as we poke fun at him, Chatot does work hard to keep the guild running smoothly."

To our surprise, Chatot never showed up for the daily meeting. Instead, Wigglytuff led assembly himself. "Alright, friends! Chatot is not here today, so I'll be giving this morning's briefing. First, I'm sure you're all wondering about the time gears. Unfortunately, while we do know that one has been stolen, we only know so because we discovered another time gear. As such, we cannot act on this information until the theft is officially reported to the guild. Instead, I want everyone to do their normal jobs today. Those of you who normally report to Chatot can either take today off or report your missions to me tonight. Are there any questions?"

"Hey hey! If we take the day off, what is there to do? Are you seriously suggesting we just sit around the guild and wait?" Corphish asked.

"Why, of course not, Corphish!" the Guildmaster replied. "I would never ask a friend to do something so boring! You can always explore. Better yet, Treasure Town got a new café while we were on the expedition. You should try it; I know I will. Now, if there are no more questions… One!"

"Don't shirk work!" the guild recited. We continued the usual cheers and Wigglytuff dismissed everyone, but he stopped my team before we could leave.

"Crest, before you go anywhere, I need to talk to you privately," he explained. "Brandon, you can come too. Actually, I think you should join us, since you already know."

The Guildmaster led us into his room, and upon entering he appeared more serious than usual. Just like at the lake, actually. "What's going on?" I asked. "You said Brandon already knows, but I'm in the dark. Why do you need to talk to me?"

"It's because of what happened at Fogbound Lake," Wigglytuff answered, completely serious. "As you know, I try to stay… let's say, 'cheerful' around recruits. I only act serious when I absolutely have to. It keeps the guild safe."

"Okay, but why are you telling me this?" I questioned.

This time Brandon answered, "He needs to keep his serious side a secret. Apparently, whenever someone wants to attack the guild, they attack him directly because he's not perceived as a threat, and he uses that to protect the other guild members."

"So, the incompetent leader that nobody takes seriously is just an act?" I reasoned. "But it sounds like you're making yourself a pretty big target then. Is that really safe?"

"I assure you I can defend myself. After all, who do you think took care of Team Skull? When they realized I wasn't going to let them follow you, they attacked me. Big mistake on their part," Wigglytuff explained. "It'll take more than a type and numbers disadvantage to take me down. In any case, I need you to promise you won't tell anyone my secret. Under normal circumstances, I only reveal my true self to those who figure it out on their own like Brandon did, so the fewer pokemon who know about this the better."

"I can agree to that," I answered.

"Good," he replied. "Now, I do have something to give you. Uxie gave me this treasure box in exchange for our help defending the time gear, but I want your team to have it. Think of it as a consolation for Brandon's lost memory. If what Uxie said was true, then there is little hope that you will recover it. Don't get discouraged though! We still have to learn about your visions after all."

"To be honest, I suspect my past is the least of our concerns," Brandon replied. "Have you heard anything from your friend on the Mist continent?"

Wigglytuff let out a defeated sigh. "I wrote him a letter, but if time has really stopped in that region it will never reach him. I also have a message ready for the Expedition Society on the Water Continent. They are the ones who requested our previous expedition, and their leader is another friend of mine. As soon as the guild receives official word of the stolen time gear I will inform him of what has happened."

"I guess there isn't really anything we can do about it," I reasoned. "If there is nothing more, I'd like to go to that new café you mentioned in this morning's announcements. I assume we'll see you there later?"

"Not today, I'm afraid," Wigglytuff answered. "I gave Chatot the day off, and we just got back from a somewhat rushed expedition. I'll be too busy to do much of anything fun for a while. You two can check it out though."

Brandon and I made our way out of the guild and to the crossroads. It was there that we saw a hole leading underground, which we assumed was the new café. Sure enough, a large yet surprisingly well-lit room was waiting for us beneath the surface.

"Welcome to Spinda's Café!" greeted a Spinda who I assumed to be the owner. "Is this your first time here?"

"It is, actually," I answered. "We just got back from the guild's expedition."

Spinda seemed quite excited to hear that. "You're guild members? That's great! Your explorations draw a lot of attention to the town; without them I wouldn't have been able to open up shop. Why don't you take a seat anywhere you like? First drink's on the house." With that warm welcome out of the way Spinda left to tend to her other customers.

We were about to find our own seats when a voice called out to us. "Hey, Crest, Brandon, over here!" A quick search of the room revealed the voice to be a familiar Omanyte.

"Hi Spiral!" I greeted as we joined her table. "We were wondering when we would run into you again."

"I told you I stop by Treasure Town for supplies, didn't I? Saw this new café and figured you'd show up here eventually. Turns out your guild was on an expedition when it opened up, though," she explained.

"Wait, were you looking for us?" Brandon asked.

"Actually, yes. I was curious about your amnesia, so I did a bit of digging," Spiral explained. "I thought, 'Crest lived near a dungeon with hostile Piplup and I lived near a dungeon with hostile Omanyte, so maybe Brandon is from a dungeon with hostile Chikorita.'"

That logic does make sense, but there are some problems with it. I doubted it would explain how Brandon washed up on the beach, and Brandon wasn't always a Chikorita anyway. He was a… what was it? I think Uxie called it a "human." Whatever it was didn't exist in Pokesh, or seemingly at all from what I could tell.

"So you think you know where Brandon is from?" I asked.

"Well, Chikorita are not exactly a common species," Spiral reasoned. "So far I've only heard of one mystery dungeon with hostile Chikorita. It's called Mystifying Forest."

"Isn't that the one that leads to Luminous Spring?" I questioned.

She seemed surprised that I had heard of it. "It is. How did you know?"

I was hesitant to answer out of fear it would reveal my identity but decided there was no harm in it. If nobody had figured it out by now, I doubted this would clue them in. "My brother went there a few years ago to evolve. Actually, Brandon and I have both reached evolution level, so we should probably consider making a trip there ourselves."

Brandon was caught of guard by that. "I haven't even considered evolution. To be honest, I don't think I'm ready for… more change," he explained. "Though I guess I'm not against visiting the place. It would be nice to see another Chikorita, even if it is just a hostile."

"Actually, that's what I was thinking about before," Spiral said. "Mystifying Forest is a difficult dungeon, but the Chikorita there are around the level you were when we met, and hostiles aren't very smart. They wouldn't know much more than basic survival."

"Are you seriously suggesting Brandon used to be a hostile?" I couldn't believe how big of a claim that was. "I thought hostiles couldn't exist outside of their home dungeons. Don't they dissipate or something?"

Spiral must have expected my response. "Most of them, yes. But if one did survive? I think it would be just like him."

"Well, I have my doubts," Brandon cut in. "But I have had another thought. Luminous Spring sounds pretty important and its neighboring dungeon is home to Chikorita, so maybe I could have a vision there."

"What's this about a vision? I seem to recall you mentioning something similar back at the waterfall," Spiral inquired.

"To be honest, we aren't sure ourselves," I explained, "but sometimes, when Brandon touches something, he sees a vision relating to its past or future. It's happened four times already, but we still don't know exactly how they work."

"Huh… I guess you're the king of mysteries then, aren't you?" Spiral responded.

A moment later Spinda showed up with a pair of drinks. "Here you go, explorers! Smoothies made from your favorite gummis! Probably!" she said, handing me the blue drink. Brandon received a green one, likely made from a grass gummi.

Taking a sip from the drink I said, "How about this: since Wigglytuff gave us the day off, we spend it going to Luminous Spring. We can evolve and you can try to have a vision."

"Hey, don't leave me out of this!" Spiral interjected. "It was my idea, after all. Besides, unless you two have seriously powered up since last time, Mystifying Forest will be too difficult for you on your own."

"Sounds fair to me. I don't plan on evolving, at least not yet, but I'll take any chance I can get to learn about my past," Brandon agreed.

"You're not going to evolve?" I asked, incredulous. I couldn't believe someone would choose to stay in their base form. Back on Blizzard Island, evolution was like a right of passage. Either you evolved, or you were treated like a child forever, and I was tired of being treated like a child.

To my surprise, Spiral agreed with Brandon. "Not everyone is interested in evolving. I've reached evolution level too, but I won't evolve. Omastar have a bad reputation for being aggressive. Not exactly a good look for an explorer. Anyway, how has your guild work been? Was the expedition a success?"

"It's been pretty rough," Brandon explained. "Chatot invited an exploration team called Team Skull to help with the expedition. Unfortunately, they're a team of thieves. They wouldn't leave us alone, and their poisons are naturally bad for Grass types. Luckily for us they disappeared during the expedition itself. We didn't find anything though."

"The guild didn't find anything," I corrected. "Our team found this treasure box though. We don't have the Poke to get it opened, but it's something."

"Wait, you two are broke?" Spiral asked.

"Our guild takes ninety percent of monetary rewards from missions to fund our training," Brandon clarified, "and we haven't had time to do many missions in the first place. We spent all our Poke on supplies for the expedition."

"In that case, I have an idea," Spiral suggested slyly, "Since we're going to Luminous Spring anyway, tell the guild I'm your client for today. I'll slide you some poke to get that box opened, and you can brag to Chatot about working on your day off."

"Spiral, that really isn't necessary…" I began only to get cut off.

"Don't worry about it. Don't take this the wrong way, but I'm always up to get one over on that guild," Spiral explained. "This is as much for my benefit as it is for you."

Brandon almost seemed disappointed by that. "I suppose that means you aren't interested in officially joining our team then."

She thought about it for a moment before answering, "Not right now. No offense, but until you get stronger you would only slow down my own explorations, and your guild and I don't get along in the first place. Maybe when you're more experienced or if the guild changes leadership I'll join you. Until then, I'd rather remain an independent explorer."

"Well, that's fine, I guess," I conceded. "Not everyone will join a team as easily as Brandon did."

"Hey, what else was I going to do?" he defended. "Jump back in the ocean?"

"Nah, leave that to us Water types," Spiral joked. "Looks like you finished your smoothies. Come on, we have a dungeon to explore!"


	18. Chapter 17: A Ghostly Discovery

Author's Note:  
Yay original content! This is a chapter I've been looking forward to writing for a long time. We finally get a glimpse into Brandon's past.

* * *

Maybe Spiral was on to something when she suggested I was originally from Mystifying Forest. We hadn't even entered the dungeon yet, but something about this place felt familiar. It was the same kind of familiarity I had felt in Foggy Forest in fact, only stronger. I was beginning to think that, despite what Uxie had told me, there was a chance this place could restore my memory.

"This dungeon should be much tougher than any of the others you two have explored," Spiral noted. "You are ready to go, right? No last-moment preparations to make?"

"I'm ready," Crest confirmed, "though I think Brandon is distracted by something."

"I… feel like I know this place," I explained, "but I still don't remember anything. As for preparations, there is one thing: my badge says I should be able to use Magical Leaf. If you don't mind, I'd like to practice a bit before entering the dungeon."

"I don't have a problem with it," Spiral answered, "but I think Magical Leaf needs a target to work. It's not like Razor Leaf; without a target the move will fail."

That didn't sound like a problem to me. "There's nothing stopping me from just targeting a tree or something."

"No, you need to target a pokemon for the move to work properly or it will be much weaker. Try using the attack against me, my Protect can still block it," Spiral suggested.

Crest didn't seem to think that was a good idea. "You do realize you have a quad weakness to Grass, right?"

"And you realize that he's _half_ my level?" she countered. "Even if Magical Leaf hits me, I can take it. Remember what I said back at the waterfall? There is more to life than type matchups."

"If you're that confident, then let's try it," I said. "I suspect it shouldn't be too difficult to learn the move. It is just a better Razor Leaf, after all." I tried the attack, and Spiral's shield easily blocked it.

"First try. You're getting better at this," Crest commented. "Keep experimenting with it in the dungeon though. It should home in on enemies, even if you don't aim the move at all. I'm going to try Bide against the weaker hostiles."

"Well, looks like we're ready then. Like I said before, this dungeon will be tough. Leave the evolved hostiles to me and try to keep your distance with Bubble Beam and Magical Leaf, and I'll use Water Pulse," Spiral suggested before entering the dungeon.

As was expected from a forest dungeon, I was at a type disadvantage against nearly every enemy. Luckily, our combined ranged attacks meant very few hostiles could get close enough to be a threat. When enemies did manage to get close, Spiral's Protect was able to block attacks, and my Reflect could defend my teammates from a safe distance. Beyond that, we found and used a slumber orb.

"You two are holding up better than I expected," Spiral encouraged as Crest and I battled the weaker hostiles.

Of course, not everything was going smoothly. "I don't like this place. This is the only time I've met other Chikorita, and I have to fight them," I said, watching a defeated hostile fade away. "Is it like this for you in Brine Cave?"

"You get used to it," Spiral answered, picking up the pecha berry it dropped. "Remember, they're just hostiles. They aren't… They aren't real."

"But didn't you suggest that Brandon used to be a hostile?" Crest reasoned.

"I know, it's just…" Spiral paused as she thought for a second. "I don't like to just wait around for answers. I thought maybe we would find something if we came here, but the more I think about it, the less I'm sure."

"I suspect we'll be leaving here with more questions than answers," I agreed. "There's something strange I've noticed about this dungeon. It feels like it's been getting easier as we go deeper."

Crest caught on to what I was saying. "Normally it's the other way around. The last few floors have been more complex than the first, yet we haven't run into nearly as many hostiles."

"It does seem strange," Spiral agreed, "but it's probably just really good... err, bad… no, strange luck. I've never seen this before, but that doesn't mean it doesn't happen."

We continued through the dungeon and the pattern continued: each floor had more twists and turns than the last, and enemies became rarer and rarer. By the time we reached the last few floors, there were no enemies to be seen. We couldn't even find items anymore. Eventually, we reached a narrow clearing.

"We finally reached the end," I noted. Looking around, I discovered that this place was somehow even stranger than the dungeon. The forest was dark, and seemingly colorless. The trees around us were eerily still, and the air was no different. There were no pokemon here, or wind, or… anything.

"Luminous Spring should be just up ahead," Crest said. From what I could tell, he hadn't noticed anything strange yet.

Spiral was concerned though. "Something doesn't seem right here."

As we walked along the path I noticed the grass beneath me. It felt stiff, as though it did not want to move. Looking behind us, I saw our footprints had been imprinted in the grass. _'I've never seen grass like this before. Sure, my memory isn't exactly reliable, but still…'_

"Hey guys, I think I found the spring," Spiral called from ahead of me.

"Are you sure?" Crest asked.

"Well, no actually," she responded. "I've never seen anything like this."

The "spring" was completely still; it wasn't flowing at all. The water was impossibly calm. Curious, Crest dipped a flipper into it. "This isn't at all like Frost described," he said quietly.

"What was that?" Spiral asked.

"My brother," Crest clarified. "He came here a few years ago. The spring is supposed to be vibrant and glowing with its power. As if the water itself was alive." He lifted his flipper and the water held its shape.

"Nothing is moving," Spiral noted. "It's like the forest itself is dead."

Crest was extremely disappointed. "I guess I can't evolve here. But, this just doesn't make sense…" This was the first time I've ever seen Crest not have an explanation for something. After a moment of deathly silence, he said, "Brandon, touch the water. Maybe you'll have a vision that can explain this."

"I'll try it," I said, placing my front leg in the shallow water.

I closed my eyes and concentrated. After a brief moment of silence, I heard a now familiar ringing sound and saw a flash of white light. As the vision began, I couldn't believe what I saw. _'Those are humans. A whole village of them. Is this vision… a memory?'_

The vision focused in on a small group of humans armed with swords and bows. "Hey, guys, wait up! Let me go with you!" Was that my voice?

"Not a chance, wimp." One of them replied.

Another cut in, "How many times do we have to tell you? We're hunters, not babysitters."

"You can't even use your magic effectively, what makes you think you could survive a hunt? Go back to the farms where you belong."

The group left and the vision began to fade. A moment later, a new one took its place. This time I was confronted with an elderly woman. "Pay them no mind, young one. Your skills are your own, and no one else's."

"But everyone else's magic is so much better than mine," my voice responded.

"That is no indication of your worth. You have a capacity for great wisdom, child," the woman comforted. "There is much I can teach you, if you are willing to learn."

The vision began to fade again, ending with my past voice. "Thank you, elder." The ringing sound returned, and the flash of light that signaled the vision's end brought me crashing back into reality.

"What… was that…" I asked myself shakily.

Crest appeared worried. "Brandon? Are you okay?"

"What did you see?" Spiral asked.

"I'm not sure how to explain it," I began. "I think it was a vision of my past."

"You mean like a memory?" Spiral pressed.

"I think so," I tried to explain, "but before I describe what I saw, you're going to need some context. I never brought it up before, but I actually do remember one thing. I haven't always been a pokemon."

Spiral was immediately skeptical. "If you weren't a pokemon than what were you?"

"That's actually why I didn't explain earlier. I was something called a human. As far as I can tell, none of the pokemon in Treasure Town have ever heard of them." I said.

"We know it sounds ridiculous, but it's the truth," Crest added. "I saw him when he found out he became a pokemon. Brandon's reaction was genuine."

"Well, if you insist," Spiral hesitantly accepted our explanation, "but what did you see in the vision?"

"There was a group of around four humans, some sort of hunting party I think. They refused to let me join them," I recalled. "Then, I was alone with an elder of some sort. She was trying to comfort me."

"That's it?" Evidently Spiral wasn't impressed.

"Actually, there was one more thing. In both visions, someone mentioned something about magic," Crest tensed up when I said that. "Do you know anything about that?"

"Only that it's extremely dangerous," Crest replied. "My parents always used to warn me to stay far away from anything magical."

Magic was that bad, huh? I decided not to tell him that the visions implied that I could use it. "In any case, we didn't learn anything about the spring."

"That is strange. All your other visions related to the thing you touched. Why would the Luminous Spring give you a vision about yourself?" Crest wondered.

Spiral didn't think that was much of a mystery. "Obviously he has some sort of connection to this place."

"And that connection would be?" Crest asked.

"No clue," Spiral answered. "I think we should leave now, though. This place is creepy."

"I agree. I doubt we can learn anything else here anyway," I said. "Let's report this to the guild. Not my vision, but the spring. Maybe Chatot or Wigglytuff will know something."

* * *

I was really starting to wish I hadn't given Chatot the day off. It turns out he does more than I thought to keep the guild running smoothly, either that or our expedition caused all his work to pile up in our absence. Regardless, I've been quite busy without him.

Earlier today, I was visited by a representative from the Helping Adventurous Pokemon Prosper Institute. HAPPI has a partnership with my guild; they provide badges and job requests in exchange for a share of the profits from missions. Apparently HAPPI wasn't very happy that they couldn't contact us during an emergency. At least they reported the time gear theft; now I can return to Fogbound Lake without arousing suspicion.

But that was boring work stuff, something far more interesting was happening now. "Hi friend!" I greeted a visiting explorer. He was a Dusknoir who, according to Sunflora, had become famous in our absence.

"Greetings to you too! I take it you are Wigglytuff, the master of this famous guild?" he responded.

"That's me!" I answered cheerfully. It seems someone finally recognized my talents. Hopefully that wouldn't last long, lest my cover be blown. "What brings a friend like you here?"

"I am simply looking for a lead on my next exploration," Dusknoir answered. "Your guild always receives the latest news, and my current mission is of significant importance. Though, if you don't mind, I think it would be best if we discussed this in private."

Looking around, I saw that most of the guild was listening in on our conversation from a distance. Sunflora was filling Team Strength in on who Dusknoir was, and Chimecho was with them… wait, did Sunflora know my secret? I shook the thought aside. "Of course, friend. Follow me to my chamber."

We entered my room and I took my spot behind my desk. "Now, you said you were looking for information? I'm afraid our head of intelligence is away at the moment. Chatot is taking the day off after his work on the Foggy Forest expedition."

"That is too bad. How was your expedition, by the way? Did you discover anything?" Dusknoir asked.

"Not a thing. It was a total waste of time," I responded in my usual, cheerful tone.

He seemed surprised to hear that. "Strange, I thought for sure there must be something hidden in that area. Regardless, I should explain why I'm here. Have you heard about the stolen time gears?"

"The theft was reported earlier today," I answered.

"Thefts," Dusknoir corrected. "Two have been stolen now."

"I… wasn't aware of that…" I replied, my usual optimism wavering.

"So, the mask slips," he pointed out. "There is no need to hide your true self from me. I cannot be fooled easily."

I let out a disappointed sigh. "You're not the only one. I try to remain cheerful around my recruits, but recently it's been getting harder. Some have started to see through it."

"I can imagine. Some things can't be helped, just as some pokemon can't be fooled," Dusknoir explained. "I have made it my mission to catch the time gear thief. Can I count on your guild for help?"

"Absolutely. We must catch the thief before anywhere else is affected," I agreed. "Chatot will be back tomorrow, we can strategize then. The day after, I'll assign the entire guild to assist in the capture."

Dusknoir was pleased to hear that. "Good. I have sources that suggest there are at least two thieves, one of which is a Grovyle. As for the other, I'm at a loss."

"It would seem the rumors I've heard of your knowledge are true then," I replied.

"Oh, I wouldn't say that. Rumors tend to exaggerate themselves over time; I doubt anyone could live up to what's been claimed of me," he said.

"Perhaps," I continued anyway, "but I have a question that I know nobody else has an answer to. Do you know anything about humans?"

Dusknoir appeared shocked by my question. "Where did you hear that word? I thought I was the only one who knew of them."

His reaction worried me, so I refused to answer. "What do you know?"

"Please forgive the brash response, I was caught off guard," Dusknoir explained. "I'm afraid my knowledge of humans is limited. They are not pokemon, that much is certain. Despite that, they can still use potent elemental magic, which makes them extremely dangerous. Moreover, humans are masters of manipulation. They have no qualms with leading you to your own destruction."

That was a lot to take in. Of course, I already knew that humans were not pokemon, but I didn't know anything about magic. And what about dangerous and manipulative? That didn't seem to match Brandon at all. Then again, how would I know who was manipulating me?

"I must ask again how you know of humans," Dusknoir pressed.

"I know someone who claims he used to be one," I admitted.

That caught his attention. "And who would that be?"

"He wanted to remain anonymous," I lied. Dusknoir clearly didn't trust humans; until I knew why I wasn't going to put my recruits at risk.

"Of course," he replied respectfully, "though I must urge you head my warning."

"Oh, relax. I play others for fools, not the other way around," I answered.

Dusknoir laughed it off. "If you insist. I will meet with you tomorrow to formulate a plan to catch the thieves. Until then!" he waved as he departed from the room.

I relaxed a bit after he left, but my mind was still racing. _'I claim I can't be played a fool, yet now I know someone has tricked me. But who? Dusknoir is hunting down the time gear thieves, so I know he has good intentions. Brandon was quiet, sure, but never maliciously so. Surely I have to trust my own recruit.'_

I was interrupted from my thoughts by a knock on my door. "Come in, friends!"

Team Strength entered the room and Crest said, "Guildmaster? We have to report our exploration from today."

"I wouldn't worry too much about that," I responded. "I'm not as obsessed with protocol as Chatot is."

"This is important," Brandon answered. "We think you should know about it."

"We visited Luminous Spring today," Crest continued.

"Luminous Spring?" I repeated, "but you didn't evolve. Was something the matter there?"

Brandon answered, "Yes, but we aren't sure what it was. The water wasn't flowing; it held its shape when we touched it, and everything was grey."

"Whatever it was made it impossible to evolve there," Crest added. "Do have any idea what was causing that?"

Unfortunately, I was at a loss. "I don't know. I have, however, received word that a second time gear has been stolen. Perhaps the state of the spring is related to the gears? Whatever the case, catching the thief will be the guild's number one priority. In two days, I will assign everyone to that mission. I suggest you spend tomorrow making any necessary preparations."

"Someone stole another one?" Crest asked. "But why would anyone need time gears?"

"Your guess is as good as mine, Crest," I responded. A moment later, we heard Chimecho calling the guild to dinner. "Please don't tell anyone about this yet. I'll explain the situation at tomorrow's assembly; until then I don't want anyone panicking."

"We understand," Brandon answered. "We won't say anything until you do. Anyway, let's get to dinner. I'm starving after today's exploration."

"Oh, one more thing, before you go," I said as the team turned to leave. "Does Sunflora know my secret?"

Brandon appeared confused by my question. After a moment of thought a realization hit him. "No. Does Chimecho?"

"Yeah," I admitted. "Guess I should have told you, huh?"

"It doesn't matter," he replied. "See you at dinner."


	19. Chapter 18: Electric Ally

Author's Note:  
Given that I'm skipping a lot of filler, you might have thought I would skip Amp Plains. Nope! Instead, I'm using it to introduce a new character. Enjoy the chapter!

* * *

As Brandon and I waited for this morning's assembly, I saw Dusknoir was waiting alongside us. If what Sunflora said yesterday was true, then I wondered why someone as skilled as he was would spend time at our guild. Supposedly he worked alone and didn't have a team, so it seemed strange for that kind of explorer to ask a guild for help. Of course, that wasn't the only thing strange about Dusknoir; though Sunflora claimed he was famous, I had never heard of him.

Brandon also noticed something strange. "Wigglytuff is early," he pointed out. "Normally it's just us, Sunflora, and Chatot right now."

"He must be worried about the time gears," I responded quietly. "He is supposed to let the guild know a second one has been stolen. Maybe he wants to appear serious for that."

"Maybe," Brandon agreed, "but we shouldn't speculate, at least not out loud. Let the Guildmaster break the news."

It wasn't long before everyone else joined us in the meeting room. Chatot was back in his usual place, though there was a short delay as Wigglytuff filled him in on yesterday's events. Despite that, Chatot remained calm as he called the assembly to order.

"Okay, pokemon, we have several announcements today, so listen closely," Chatot began. "First, I'm sure you've all noticed that a famous explorer is staying at our guild. Dusknoir is said to be a skilled battler and very knowledgeable, but we must insist that none of you bother him with trivial requests such as autographs or explorations. He is a guest in our guild and should be treated as such."

"Now Chatot, there is no need for such concerns," Dusknoir explained. "I would be happy to assist your recruits in any way during my free time. However, I'm afraid we have important matters to attend to first. Wigglytuff, if you will?"

"Right!" Wigglytuff answered enthusiastically. "Now, I'm sure many of you have heard rumors that some of the time gears have been stolen. Unfortunately, Dusknoir has confirmed those rumors to be true. As of yesterday, two time gears have gone missing, so starting tomorrow, this guild's number one priority will be tracking down and catching the thieves."

"However, we are ill-prepared to do so at the moment," Chatot continued. "As such, the Guildmaster and I will consult with Dusknoir to form our plan of action. By the end of the day, our preparations will be complete. We want the rest of you to spend today preparing for a potentially difficult mission."

"Does that mean we should not do field missions today?" Sunflora asked.

Dusknoir had a different thought. "I would suggest you treat today as you would any other day. If a guild as famous as this one was to suddenly stop all explorations without giving an explanation, it would worry the townsfolk. It would be best to not cause a panic as long as there is hope that the thieves and the destruction they cause can be contained."

"We will trust your judgment," Chatot confirmed. "You should all attend to your usual duties until further notice."

"That's right!" Wigglytuff cut in, "It's our job as explorers to keep everyone else safe, and nothing will ever change that. Now then, everyone, one!"

"Don't shirk work!" the guildmembers recited. When the morning cheers finished, everyone dispersed to their daily routines. Chatot and Dusknoir followed the Guildmaster into his room, and Brandon and I made our way up the ladders and out of the guild.

As we walked to Treasure Town, we discussed our plan for the day. "When Chatot said we should prepare for a difficult mission, he just meant we should buy some items, right?" Brandon asked.

"That's most of it, but I think we should open that treasure box first," I replied. "How much Poke did Spiral give us yesterday?"

Brandon checked our bag before answering, "Five-hundred."

"So we have plenty then. Xatu only charges one-hundred fifty to open a box," I explained.

"Oh, that's what Xatu does? I wasn't sure," he said.

That surprised me a bit. "Didn't I explain that before?"

"I didn't know what a 'box' was before," he explained.

"In any case, what do you think is in it?" I asked.

Brandon appeared annoyed by the question. "You do realize that I know literally nothing about boxes, right?"

By now we were at Xatu's shop. "Sorry, I forgot. Still, it's fun to speculate," I said, handing the box to Xatu along with the Poke for his service.

He silently turned around and entered the tent that made up his shop, returning a moment later with an item in his wing. "And so, it is revealed," Xatu finally said. "Within the box was this special band."

We left the shop and determined what to do with our new equipment. "This band boosts the power of special moves," I explained. "It should be pretty useful for us."

"So, it could make your Bubble Beam stronger then," Brandon suggested. "It's already our strongest move, imagine how powerful it could be with that band."

I handed him the special band saying, "Don't act like your attacks are weak; remember Drowzee? It was your Razor Leaf that took him down, boosted by the power band. I don't need a band to boost my attacks, and you don't even know any physical moves anymore. Besides, I kind of like the silver bow."

"I just think you would benefit more from increased attack power than I would," Brandon reasoned, "but I do agree that the power band isn't helping me anymore."

While he put on the special band I checked the Kecleon shop. There were a lot of useful items, but I decided to only buy two oran berries and a pecha berry. I also left Kecleon the five poke we owed them for the luminous orb. The leftover coins could be used to restock our bag later, but for now we had plenty of items. We were interrupted as we left the shop, however.

Marill and Azurill ran up to us, and Marill had a scrap of paper in his hand. "Crest, there you are. We need your help with something," Marill said.

"What is it?" I asked.

"Well, you know how we lost a rare item a while ago?" he asked.

"Actually, we were just talking about something related to that. You were looking for it when Drowzee tricked you, right?" Brandon cut in.

"That's right!" Azurill answered cheerfully.

"We still haven't found it," Marill explained, "but I think we've come pretty close. The problem is that we think someone stole it."

The Kecleon overheard and jumped into the conversation. "That's just terrible!" the purple one said.

"Perhaps it would be best to leave your item and find a new one. What are you looking for, exactly? If it's not too rare, we may be able to sell it," the green Kecleon added.

"It's a water float," Azurill answered.

"A trade item?" Kecleon replied, incredulous. "We truly wish we could sell an item so valuable, but short of a miracle, I'm afraid we could never find one."

"You said it was stolen, right?" I asked. "Do you know who stole it? We might be able to catch them."

"We don't know who stole it, but we do know where it is," Marill answered, handing me the paper.

I read over the note. "The water float is now in our possession. If you want it back, go to the deepest part of Amp Plains. Though, given how weak and puny you are, you could never make it. How about you complain to your big-shot friends instead? Chaw-haw-haw."

Brandon was instantly suspicious of the note. "Whoever wrote this clearly wanted _us_ to go to Amp Plains."

"That dungeon is probably full of Electric types," I explained. "I think we could retrieve the water float, but Marill will have to wait here, and there's no way we're bringing Azurill."

"It's not a good matchup for you either," Brandon pointed out.

"That's never stopped _you_ from exploring," I countered. Turning to Marill and Azurill, I said, "You two wait here. We'll get your item back."

* * *

I admit that I was a bit on edge when we reached Amp Plains. This place had clearly been ravaged by thunderstorms for a long time, and even now the bright flashes of lightning made me jump. Couple that with the knowledge that we were willingly walking into a trap, and I was surprised that Crest found the courage to come here at all.

"It's easy to see why Electric types love this place," Crest said as we prepared to enter it.

"No kidding," I replied. "Try to stay near me in the dungeon. I'll block as many attacks as I can."

To be honest, it was nice to finally be at a type advantage again. This would be the first time that I defended Crest in a dungeon instead of the other way around. Sure, we had faced Water type hostiles before, but Crest could hold his own against them just fine. Besides, in those dungeons either I didn't know a Grass move yet or Spiral was there to fight the hostiles.

Progress through Amp Plains was slow. Since most Electric types were more agile than we were, I had to take a lot of hits to protect Crest. At least Reflect helped us defend against the swarm of Quick Attack users we faced. It didn't protect us from Static though, a problem we discovered when Crest tried out Fury Attack on an Elekid. That mistake cost us our only heal seed.

Still, my ability to heal myself meant the dungeon was going mostly smoothly. With me to defend him, Crest got more use out of Bide than I ever thought possible from such a slow move. It certainly helped that hostiles don't seem to know anything about type matchups. At least, most of them didn't.

Upon defeating a hostile Mareep, Crest went to pick up the cheri berry it dropped and made the mistake of letting his guard down. "Spark!" I heard a hostile shout.

"Reflect!" I responded, my barrier going up just in time to defend Crest from an electrified tackle. As the moves clashed, I determined the attacker to be a Shinx.

"Fury Attack!" Crest retaliated, landing multiple hits on our enemy.

I ran over to the battle as the Shinx jumped back defensively. He began to glow bright yellow before being engulfed in a red aura. While I waited for his next attack, Crest fired a Bubble Beam. Shinx ran through the attack and responded with another Spark, but this time I was ready to block the hit for Crest. When the Spark hit me, Crest jumped away so I could counter with Poison Powder.

Shinx and I both stumbled away from the interaction. That last Spark was much stronger than I expected; I doubt Crest could have taken the hit. The Shinx winced from poison damage before charging at me with a Tackle, but this time Crest blocked the hit and unleashed a Bide in response. I used that time to heal with Synthesis and retake the lead. It didn't matter though; the Shinx collapsed from the poison a moment later.

"Are you okay?" I asked Crest.

"I'll be fine, but what was that? His battle style wasn't like the other hostiles," Crest pointed out, grabbing an oran berry.

I looked back to the Shinx, perplexed. "I've never heard one call out its attacks before. If he was a hostile, wouldn't he have faded away by now?"

Crest seemed just as surprised. "Wait, is that Shinx an explorer? If he is, he must not have a badge. Otherwise he would have been ejected from the dungeon."

We cautiously approached him, noting that he was still barely conscious. "We can't just leave him here," I said as another wave of poison damage hit the Shinx.

"Do we have any reviver seeds?" Crest asked.

"Just one," I said, fishing it out of our bag. "I hope you don't end up needing this later." I offered the seed to Shinx and he hesitantly accepted it. A moment later, he got up, fully healed. Even the poison was gone.

Confused, the Shinx asked, "Why did you heal me?"

"Because we're an exploration team. Why did you attack us?" Crest responded.

"This place is dangerous," he answered. "You can't go any farther."

"Why not?" I questioned.

"There is a pack of Luxio living at the end of this dungeon, and they don't take kindly to strangers. If they find you, it… won't end well," Shinx explained.

"That doesn't explain why you attacked us," I argued. "Why didn't you just say something in the first place?"

Shinx looked pretty upset by that. "I'm really sorry, okay? That's just the way things are here. Everyone always attacks first out of fear they will be attacked themselves. The pack is no different in that regard, but they are ruthless. You _have_ to turn back now."

Crest disagreed. "We're not here looking for a fight, we're looking for a lost item. We'll leave as soon as we find it."

"You don't understand! It's way too dangerous to keep going," Shinx tried to explain.

"If things get too dangerous we can use our escape orb," I argued.

"But," Shinx began before giving up. "Fine, but at least let me go with you. Maybe I can talk some sense into the pack." We hesitated for a moment, so he added, "I promise I won't attack you again. I'll even help you fight if it comes to that."

"Alright," I conceded. "As long as Crest is okay with it."

"If you're going to help us, then you can come," Crest agreed. "We're looking for a water float. Let us know if you see it."

Our alliance was a bit uneasy at first, largely because we weren't sure if we could trust someone who attacked us, but Shinx quickly proved himself a useful ally. With his help, it was easy to keep Crest away from enemies. The tension quickly faded as we progressed through the dungeon with relative ease.

"Hey, Shinx? There's something I've been wondering," I said. "You mentioned that the 'pack' you're so worried about is a pack of Luxio, right? That's your evolved form, so are you originally from that pack?"

"Yeah, I am," he admitted. "That's how I know so much about them, and why I attacked you instead of just saying something. Oh, and my name is actually Jolt."

"I'm Crest and that's Brandon," Crest properly introduced us. "Why did you leave the pack?"

"Because they're aggressive," Jolt answered. "They attack everyone they see, and they can't be reasoned with. Plus, when they start an attack, they… don't stop. I saw so many pokemon get hurt by them, and eventually just, well, left. I didn't know what else to do, so I started attacking explorers so they would never reach the pack."

We reached another set of stairs and found ourselves on a rest floor. "Was this the first time you lost a battle?" Crest asked.

"Yes," Jolt answered. "It's actually pretty rare for experienced explorers to come here. Most pokemon know how dangerous this place is."

"To be honest, I'm surprised Crest didn't know," I replied.

"This dungeon isn't famous, at least, not outside of the Grass Continent," he defended. "And an aggressive pack of pokemon isn't normal for mystery dungeons. If it was, I would have expected it."

"I still think we should turn back," Jolt complained.

Of course, Crest and I disagreed. "We came here knowing we were walking into a trap," I explained. "Now that we know what that trap is, we can prepare for it."

As I rummaged through the treasure bag Crest asked, "Do we have any useful orbs in there?"

"We have a foe-fear orb and a blowback orb. Actually, I think you should hold on to that one," I answered, giving the blowback orb to Crest. "We also have one stun, one sleep, and two blast seeds. Oh, and this."

I handed the power band to Jolt. "You want me to use this?"

"You can use it better than either of us," I reasoned. "After all, you said you would help us fight."

"I know, but you're still underestimating the pack," he argued. "And don't think you can hide from them either. Their leader is a Luxray."

Crest still wasn't too worried, falling back on our usual reasoning. "We can always use our escape orb."

"Wait, you aren't going to abandon me with the pack, are you?" Jolt worried.

"Relax," Crest replied, messing with his badge. "I've officially made you our client for an escort mission. If we have to escape, you'll warp out with us."

"I think that's all the preparations we need," I said. "Let's just move on and get this over with."

The second half of the dungeon wasn't much harder than the first, likely thanks to Jolt and the power band. During the exploration we found a new luminous orb. "You do realize we don't need that, right?" Jolt said. "I am a Shinx, after all. Bright flashes of light are kind of my thing." The yellow rings on his legs glowed slightly to make his point.

"Okay, but you won't always be exploring with us though," Crest reasoned. "I'm sure we'll find a use for it later."

"Oh, right," Jolt answered, almost sounding disappointed. It wasn't much longer before we reached the end of the dungeon. "This clearing is the last traversable area we can reach. Trying to go further will just get you lost, which is pretty much a death sentence around here."

"Let me guess: because of the pack?" Crest asked.

"If the lightning doesn't get you first, then yes," Jolt replied. "Let's just find your item and leave before we cause any trouble."

"It's too late for that, Fang," an ominous voice called out.

"I think they found us," I said, too startled to add anything productive.

Jolt was also terrified. "We are so dead," he said to himself. "You might want to get that escape orb ready."

"Wait, I see the water float! It's just up ahead," Crest pointed out.

"FANG!" the voice from earlier called out, "how dare you bring outsiders here? This place is our haven, and you would jeopardize it? Or did you bring them here so we could get rid of these trespassers?"

"Don't call me Fang!" Jolt shouted back angrily. "My name is Jolt now, and these trespassers have no intentions of fighting you. Let them reclaim their lost item and they'll leave peacefully!"

A brief pause followed only to be ended by the mysterious voice. "So that's how it is… Traitor! Let there be no mercy for trespassers. We'll destroy the lot of you, here and now!"

A blinding light filled what was now the battlefield, and when it faded we found ourselves surrounded by the pack. The Luxray Jolt had mentioned earlier was staring us down from across the arena, and eight Luxio glared at us from much closer distances.

"Brandon, you have a plan, right? Because this would be a really bad time for you to not have a plan," Crest said shakily.

"Of course I have a plan, we do this!" I answered, smashing the foe-fear orb on the ground. "Stick together and attack one Luxio at a time. We'll get the Luxray last." The now-panicking Luxio put up little resistance as we singled them out with Magical Leaf and Bubble Beam while Jolt combined Charge and Spark to finish off our weakened enemies.

"You idiots, they're not even evolved! Are you really going to lose to a Water type?" Luxray shouted at his pack in anger. It didn't do him any good though. In fact, his shouting caused the frightened Luxio to panic more, unleashing unfocused blasts of electricity wildly across the battlefield and catching each other in the crossfire.

"Jolt, stay back and let us deal with this from a distance," I ordered, firing another round of Magical Leaf. When Crest's Bubble Beam reached the crossfire, the chaos reached an all-time high. The water caused the electricity to scatter wildly, with some of it following my guided leaves, some blasting the ground randomly, and one bolt flew directly at us. I managed to block the attack for Crest, but the blast left me feeling numb.

By now the effects of the foe-fear orb were wearing off, and only two Luxio were left standing alongside a furious Luxray. Crest reached into our bag to get me a cheri berry while Jolt maintained a defensive stance.

Suddenly, Luxray charged at us. Before I even knew what happened, Jolt was caught in his Thunder Fang a short distance ahead of me. _'Luxray must have singled me out as the leader, which means Jolt intercepted the attack. But it was so fast…'_

I was snapped from my thoughts by the two remaining Luxio charging at us. By now the cheri berry had healed me, but there was no way I'd be fast enough to dodge their attack. Instead, I tried to put up a Reflect barrier to defend all of us. That, too, was too slow, and our enemies' Sparks hit me and Crest before I could block it. I tumbled backward a short distance, but to my surprise so did one of the Luxio.

Apparently, Crest used the blowback orb to defend himself, making him the only one from our group to get out of that attack unscathed. He fired a Bubble Beam at Luxray to make him drop Jolt before getting tackled by the first Luxio's Spark.

I attempted to heal with Synthesis only to be interrupted by Luxray. "Oh, no you don't," he said maliciously, pinning me down by my leaf. "I don't care if that was Solar Beam or Synthesis, you've already caused me enough trouble." I was completely helpless as Luxray began charging an attack of his own.

"Wait! Luxray!" a vaguely familiar voice called out from behind me. As he continued to speak, I realized it was Dusknoir. "These pokemon have no ill-will toward your pack. Let them go this instant!"

"Why should I believe you, ghoul? They invaded our territory and attacked us. Just look at what they've done to my pack! Countless Luxio have fallen to these trespassers," Luxray argued.

"They are not countless; there are only six of them. I know your pack has suffered much over the years. Your weary skepticism toward travelers is completely justified. But before you do anything else, I ask you, and I ask you to answer me honestly, I ask you this: did you not attack them first?" Dusknoir reasoned. There was a deathly silence as Luxray considered Dusknoir's words. "I assure you, allow these pokemon to go free, and we will leave this place peacefully once our errand here is complete."

Another stint of silence. "You claim to know much about us, yet I know nothing of you. Still, you entered upon this scene and chose debate over battle… so be it!" Luxray said, finally letting me go. "I will choose to believe your words, Dusknoir. Complete your 'errand' and be gone by our return."

"Of course, Luxray. I would have it no other way," Dusknoir agreed.

"Good," Luxray confirmed. "But there is one more matter to attend to." He walked over to Jolt and, after confirming he was still conscious, said, "Fang, your exile is no longer self-imposed. Consider this your warning." With that he gathered the Luxio and walked off.

"Are you three alright?" Dusknoir asked after the pack had left.

"Nothing my Synthesis can't fix," I replied.

"Uhg… could I get an oran berry?" Crest asked. I didn't hesitate to give him one.

"That just leaves the Shinx," Dusknoir concluded.

I ran over to Jolt and helped him up. "Here, Jolt. Eat this, it will help," I said, offering him our last oran berry. He weakly accepted it. "We're going to take you to our guild to get healed, okay?"

"Yeah, that's okay," he got out, "not like I can stay here anyway."

"Jolt, we're really sorry," Crest said. "We didn't mean to cause you this much trouble."

"It's fine," Jolt assured us. "No matter what Luxray might say, I'd never call that pack family."

"What you did takes a lot of courage," Dusknoir praised. "No matter how much you may hate them, it couldn't have been easy to go against your own pack."

Crest walked ahead of us and picked something up. "I've got the water float. I wonder who put it here, though."

"Whoever it was wouldn't be here now," Dusknoir reasoned. "They must know how dangerous that pack is."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that," I said, stepping nearer to where Crest found the water float. Just as I suspected, I felt a familiar pain in my leaf. "I know you're there, Skuntank! Come out of wherever it is you're hiding and own up to this, you cowards!"

To my surprise, Team Skull actually did come out of hiding. "Chaw-haw-haw, so the wimp actually figured it out," Skuntank cackled.

"I didn't see _you_ fighting," I taunted back.

"Well, duh! We set you up!" Koffing explained.

"Yeah, for a team leader, you can be pretty dull," Zubat added.

"This certainly simplifies things. I'm not certain, but baiting an exploration team into a dangerous dungeon with the intent to seriously injure them is probably some sort of crime. Shall we see if there is a jail cell with your names on it?" Dusknoir threatened.

"Chaw-haw-haw, I really am the only one with a brain here. Go ahead, try to catch us. Or get the kid to a healer. You can't do both!" Skuntank shouted, his team already running away.

"They're overestimating the extent of Shinx's injuries. Still, we should get him to a healer quickly, so I suppose Skuntank was right in that regard," Dusknoir reasoned.

"In that case, let's get out of here. Crest, you and Dusknoir return the water float to Marill. I'll take Jolt to Chimecho," I said, raising my badge.


End file.
